Two Syllable Names for Girls

Carmen has long been associated with the sensuous, tragic heroine of Bizet's opera, based on a novel by Prosper Merimee; more recently it has called to mind two other bombshells: Carmen Miranda (born Maria) and Carmen Electra (born Tara), as well as the great jazz singer Carmen McRae. In the celebrity baby name world, this classic <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/495/spanish-names-for-girls">Spanish name for girls</a> was used by Hilaria and Alec Baldwin for their oldest daughter.
 She has plenty of childhood references as well: Carmen Elizabeth Juanita Echo Sky Brava Cortez is a character from the Spy Kids trilogy, Carmen Lowell appears in the Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants series, Carmen de la Pica Morales was a character on The L Word, and Carmen Sandiego is the clever anti-hero in the Where in the World Is Carmen Sandiego? computer-game franchise—she was named for Carmen Miranda and the city of San Diego.
 In the Latin community, Carmen is also used as a <a href="https://nameberry.com/boys-names">boys’ name</a>.

Carmen

Upbeat nickname-name that can't help but make you smile. You might want to use it as a short form for a more "serious" name such as Sunniva, but Sunny is undeniably, well, sunny.

Sunny

Florence is back, returning to the US Top 1000 girl names in 2017 after a nearly 40 year absence. Other English-speaking countries have been quicker to welcome Florence back into fashion. 
 
The name has a lot going for it, both for its floral feel and as a place name connection to the lovely Italian city (after which Florence Nightingale was named—it was her birthplace). The association to the city seems to be helping Florence stir back to life, along with cousin Flora.
 The band Florence + the Machine, headlined by red-haired Florence Welch, has also helped to rejuvenate its image.
 Florence was most popular in the US at the turn of the last century and in the early decades of the twentieth—it was in the Top 10 from 1886 to 1906. 
 Florence has a diverse mixture of namesakes and references—a character in Dickens's Dombey & Sons, a US First Lady (Harding), one of the Supremes, the Brady Bunch's Henderson, track and field star Florence Griffith Joyner, and several TV characters.
 Florence has some particularly lively nicknames—Flo, Flossie, and Florrie.

Florence

This name's trendy trademarks - the "K" start and the "-yah" suffix - explain how it made its way up the Top 1000. Just beware the similarities between this name and creamy liqueur "Kahlua". 

Kaliyah

This Dana-Donna variation has started to carve out its own place on popularity lists; an interesting alternative to Daniella as a namesake for a relative named Daniel. 

Danna

Bonnie is an adorable nickname name, heading back up the popularity list after a 50-year nap. A Top 100 girls' name throughout the rest of the English-speaking world, Americans are later to jump on the Bonnie bandwagon but now it's trending here too.
 
Bonnie is a word the Scots really do use for pretty, thus the root of this name, from the French bonne. Along with Betty and Bea, Bonnie, is one of the vintage <a href="https://nameberry.com/search/girls-names/b">girls' names starting with B</a>that are back in.
 Gone With the Wind gave Bonnie a big push when Scarlett and Rhett used it for their daughter. Her full name was Eugenie Victoria, but the pet name came from the fact that she had "eyes as blue as the bonnie blue flag." 
 Bonnie's last moment in the limelight came in the late sixties with the film Bonnie and Clyde, about outlaw Bonnie Parker. Now after a long decline, it's finally showing new signs of life, perhaps thanks to the Bonnies in The Vampire Diaries and The Hunger Games, as well as a new miniseries about the 1930s-era bandits.

Bonnie

This surname name was popularized for girls in the 80s and 90s by TV's Murphy Brown and it maintains that cool breezy energy today, while also having an appealing sea-related meaning. Ultimately derived from the Irish Murchadh, it means "sea warrior" — a totally brilliant way to honor a love for the ocean and marine conservation. 
 
Murphy reappeared in the US charts in the 2020s, having been absent since the 1950s, and while at first it was a solidly gender neutral name, it now leans feminine, given to 783 girls and 341 boys in a recent year, making the split 70:30.

Murphy

Fairy-tale memories of Sleeping Beauty inspire some parents—such as Rachel Bilson and Hayden Christensen—to call their daughters Briar Rose. But Briar plus a different middle name might work even better. It's one of the newly popular nature-word names, charting in the US for the first time in 2015 for both genders.
 While there are about four girls named Briar to every three boys, the name is on the rise for both genders. It could make for an interesting choice to honor a Brian.

Briar

Lauren was derived from Laurence, an English name from the Roman family name Laurentius, meaning "from Laurentum." Laurentum, an ancient Italian city, got its name from the Latin word laurus, meaning "bay laurel." 

Lauren was originally a masculine name but was embraced as a feminine name after Betty Joan Perske chose it for her stage name, Lauren Bacall, in 1944. Today, Lauren is almost 100% female, while Loren is gender-neutral.
 
Lauren was in and around the Top 25 from the early eighties until 2006, when the classic Laura began to be seen as a more stylish option. While it's still and forever a lovely name, Lauren is becoming one more identified with contemporary moms than babies.

Lauren

Logan, with its appealing Scottish burr, is a very hot boys' name—it's in the national Top 10 and heading for Number 1 in some states—and can also make a rich and resonant choice for a girl. Jason and Jordan Mewes have a daughter named Logan Lee.

Logan

Taylor is one of the prime unisex surnames used for girls and has also been a soap opera favorite. Taylor was in the Top 10 for the last several years of the twentieth century, so that now it tends to feel a little nineties – though Taylor Swift is keeping it in the spotlight and Tay is a charming nickname. Garth Brooks and Bryan Cranston have daughters named Taylor; Taylor Schilling portrays lead Piper Chapman in Orange is the New Black.

Taylor

Bird name Raven, once a symbol of pride for both African-American and Wiccan parents, is finding new life as a superhero name. Raven Darkholme is the real name of Mystique, heroine of the X-Men films played by Jennifer Lawrence. And there is another Raven superheroine in Teen Titans. Some parents may still choose Raven to signal black pride or mystical powers or maybe even Edgar Allan Poe fandom, but we are guessing most inspiration is coming from the comics.

Raven

Popularized in the 1940s by Lana (born Judy) Turner, today Lana is synonymous with American singer-songwriter Lana Del Rey. Although it has been rising steadily since the early 2000s, Lana still sits in the popularity "sweet spot" – familiar, but not overused. Simple, sleek and seamlessly international, it makes a great choice.

Lana

Mackenzie begat McKenna - a catchy but very trendy choice. While the Mc or Mac prefix means "son of," this is much more popular as a girl name in the US, peaking at #177 in 2002. 

Mckenna

One of the new word names, appealing to parents attracted to the idea of a spiritual -- or even an actual -- voyage. The Journee spelling is also being used. Unisex alert: Jenna Jameson used Journey for one of her twin boys, as did the Black Eyed Peas rock musician known as Taboo.
 Some might associate it with the San Francisco rock band Journey.

Journey

A modern English variant of the Arabic name Aaliyah, Alayah was likely inspired by the names Amaia, Amaya and Alannah. It could also be an alternative spelling of the Basque name, Alaia, which means "joyful", and it coincides with Alaya, a type of consciousness in Buddhism.
 
Alayah features in the Top 500 in both the US and the UK, and while Aaliyah does outrank it in both cases, it is nevertheless given to nearly 800 American babies and 100 in the UK. 
 
Swiss footballer Alayah Pilgrim and model and influencer Alayah Benavidez are notable bearers.

Alayah

Beguiling and lovely, Laila is one of the lilting variations of Leila and Layla. It's the name of the former-boxer daughter of Muhammad Ali and of actor Shawn Wayans. In Finland, the Sami people use this in place of the Scandinavian name Helga.

Laila

This was Irish name was once used exclusively for boys, and remains so in England and Wales where it's a Top 50 choice. In the US, however, celebs Jason Sehorn, Angie Harmon, and Lisa Marie Presley inspired many parents to consider this name for girls instead, after they chose it for their daughters. In fact, up until 2024, it ranked considerably higher for girls than it did for boys.
 
Similar in feel to Hadley and a possible update on Lindsey, Ashley, and Fiona, Finley entered the US Top 1000 for girls back in 2025, and had its peak in 2017 when it ranked at #159. Since then, however, it's been on a slow decline, and 2024 saw it rank higher for boys than for girls for the first time this century. Given to 858 girls compared to 1153 boys, it is now split 42:48 between the sexes, compared to 60:40 when it was at its peak for girls. 
 
Nevertheless, it remains a gender neutral option with plenty of style and a touch of rough and tumble thanks to nickname Finn and its heroic meaning.
 
Love Finn for a girl but don't want to use Finley? You could try Finnuala, Finola, or Finella, or perhaps Serafina or Serafine too! Love the style of Finley but want something different? Consider Hartley, Loxley, Taisley, or Connelly.

Finley

Holly ranks just in British Top 50, but it's been out of favor here since the 1970s Era of Nickname Names. Still, the name may be on her way back as a rejuvenated nature pick.
 Jolly Holly has always been among the favorite <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/412/christmas-baby-names">names for Christmas babies</a>, evoking the symbolic shrub with dark green leaves and bright red berries. And Holly is the flower for the month of December, so it's also among the perfect <a href="https://nameberry.com/list/577/names-for-december-babies">names for December babies</a>.
 A memorable fictional Holly is the enigmatic heroine of Truman Capote's Breakfast at Tiffany's, Holly Golightly (almost named Connie, and with the full name Holiday), played indelibly by Audrey Hepburn. A real life one is actress Holly Hunter. Holly Short is a fairy character in Eoin Colfer's Artemis Fowl novels. And in Galsworthy's The Forsyte Saga, Holly and Jolly are siblings.

Holly

Charlie in all its forms has been a popular gender neutral name since the early 2000s and is now given almost equally to girls and boys. While it did once lean more (statistically) masculine, it has been used on girls too since the before the 20th century. 

Like with many popular names, Charlie has inspired a host of alternative spellings, the most popular for girls being Charlee. Rarely used before the 1980s, it followed Charlie up the charts and entered the Top 1000 in 2006. 
 With it's contemporary double vowel and its arguably more feminine ending, Charlee ranks alongside Aubree, Everlee, and Oaklee in the US Top 500.. Given to nearly 900 babies each year, the spelling is nevertheless overshadowed by the traditional Charlie, which is used almost three times as often.
 
Notable bearers of the name include model and actress, Charlee Fraser, musician Charlee Brooks, and Olympian martial artist Charlee Minkin.
 
If you enjoy Charlee for its contemporary-yet-traditional feel, you might enjoy other Charlotte variations like Caro, Kit, Arlo, Sharla, and Chaz. Alternatively, if you like its gender neutral style, Frankie, Marlowe, Jory, Stevie, Jovie or Cordy might appeal.

Charlee

Two-syllable girl names dominate the English lexicon, with over 15,000 two-syllable names for girls on Nameberry.

 such as the Sanskrit Malti and the Welsh Arwen, the elegant French Celine and the multi-cultural gender neutral name Peri.

 complete list of two-syllable female names

 is too daunting, you can consult our hand-picked list of the 150+ 

Note that this list is automatically generated from the full list of names on Nameberry, and the machine sometimes 

 in English names. Eloise obviously has three syllables rather than two, while Hayes has only one.

Wade through our entire collection of two-syllable female names here, ordered by their current popularity on Nameberry.

Two-syllable girl names including top two-syllable names for girls such as Emma and Ava and unique two-syllable girl names such as the Sanskrit Malti and the Welsh Glynis. (Page 12)

15,000+ Two-Syllable Girl Names