Two Syllable Names for Boys

Philip, the name of one of the 12 apostles, is still favored by parents in search of a solid boys' classic that is less neutral than Robert or John and more distinctive than Daniel or Matthew and has many historic, royal ties. 
 Famous bearers include Saint Philip and King Philip the Great, who was the father of Alexander the Great, plus there have been numerous other French and Spanish rulers named Philip.
 Thanks to the Duke of Edinburgh, though, Philip has a certain built-in reserve, somewhat straight and staid.
 When it comes to nicknames, you're not limited to the midcentury Phil -- more lively ones include Pip and Flip.
 The name can also be spelled Phillip; that spelling is consistently used almost exactly as much as this spelling, and in 2017 there were exactly as many baby Phillips as there were baby Philips.
 Some other modern Philip namesakes are writer Roth, late actor Philip Seymour Hoffman, architect Johnson, and composer Glass. Model Eva Herzigova named her baby Philip.
 Philip comes via Latin from the Greek and was a Top 100 choice for a century, before fading in the late-1980s. In literature, Philip Pirrip is the full name of Pip from Great Expectations. Other Philips appear in the novels of Jane Austen, George Eliot, and William Thackeray -- not to mention Raymond Chandler's detective Philip Marlowe.

Philip

Azriel is more masculine than Ariel, more unusual than Israel. Also spelled Asriel and Azrael, Azriel is the name of the Angel of Death in Jewish and Muslim traditions.

Azriel

As parents were finding too many Tylers at the neighborhood playground, they began looking to Tyson as an alternative, no longer concerned with possible connections to Mike Tyson or Tyson chicken. 

Tyson

Rio is a reductive ranchero place-name with an attractive Tex-Mex lilt. No Doubt's Tom Dumont has a son named Rio Atticus. 
 Also a South American place name, and associated with the Rio Grande, it's been used as a swaggering cowboy name in films spanning from a William S. Hart character in 1915 to Marlon Brando's in One-Eyed Jacks. Adding to its international credibility, Rio is also a Japanese name meaning "place of the cherry blossoms".
 Rio is gender neutral, given to about 500 baby boys versus 100 baby girls. It's noted as a girl's name in the catchy Duran Duran song.

This punchy surname has some favor in the last couple of decades—potentially due to rapper Kendrick Lamar. It was one of the quickest rising boy names in 2013 when it reached its high point at #318. It has since declined in popularity, but as of 2024, it remains in the US Top 500 and in the UK Top 1000.
 
The name has a number of origins and meanings, one of which is from the Welsh Cynwrig meaning "champion". Alternatively, it can derive from the Anglo-Saxon name Cyneric, meaning "royal ruler" or "king", and from the Scottish and Gaelic surnames, MacEanraig or <Machendrie, which ultimately mean "son of Henry", or "son of the home ruler".
 
Given to 641 boys in a recent count, notable bearers include baseball player Kendrick Nunn, footballer Kendrick Norton, drummer and bandleader Kendrick Scott and science writer Kendrick Frazier.

Kendrick

One of many Aidan variations — all stemming from the original Gaelic Aodhán — Eiden was the third fastest-rising boy name of 2023 and a new entry to the US Top 1000. Interestingly, despite this spelling's current success, Aidan, Aiden, Ayden, and Aden are all on the downswing.

Eiden

The Dorians were an ancient Greek tribe, one of the three major pre-Spartan tribes. It literally means "of Doris," a Greek district, or "of Doros," referring to the son of Helen of Sparta. Dorian derives from the Greek doron, meaning "gift," along with related names such as Dorothy and Dora.
 
Dorian was introduced as a first name by Oscar Wilde in his 1890 novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, the story of a narcissistic character who retains his youthful good looks while his portrait in the attic ages grotesquely. Despite this negative reference, Dorian's attributes have kept it consistently on the boys' list since the 1960s.
 Dorian also has a musical reference, being the name of one of the modes.
 Actor Dorian Harewood has been a familiar presence in movies and on TV.
 Rhythmic and unusual, Dorian makes a distinctive choice.

Dorian

Is Kaison really a variation of Kason or Kayson or Kaysen, or are they all equal inventions? Think of it as Jason or Mason, Kardashianized. Cason is the more traditional spelling, one that has the better chance of standing the test of time.

Kaison

Hamza was the legendary uncle of the Prophet Muhammad, hero of The Hamzanama, the Story of Hamza. 

Hamza

This Biblical name was rising dramatically for boys, but has plateaued in recent years. Although it's more popular for girls in the US, it's a delightful unisex choice. Eden is one of the <a href="https://nameberry.com/popular-names/france">Top 100 Boy Names in France</a>, closing in on the Top 10.

Eden

While substituting a C for a K is a modern trend, Erik is in fact the traditional spelling of the name, derived from the Old Norse Eiríkr and introduced to the English speaking world in the Anglo-Saxon period. Now, Erik is popular in Scandinavia and throughout much of Central and Eastern Europe, where it ranks in the Top 100 in Germany, Slovenia, Hungary, and more.

The Erik form remains on style in the UK where Eric feels outdated and both Erik and Erick are preferred in Spain, Latin America, and among Spanish Speakers in the US.
 
Erik is the least popular form of the name in the US charts, outranked by Eric and Erick - however, all three remain in the Top 500, and when you add all the Eric/ks together, it begins to feel like a name that ranks just outside the Top 100, in tune with August, Myles, Nicholas and Xavier. 
 
Love the Scandinavian feel of Erik? Magnus, Ivor, Ivar, Henning, Halsten, Emrik, or Torkel might provide some further inspiration.

Erik

Fletcher is a common surname with a touch of quirkiness; it definitely fits into the So Far Out It's In category--and moving further in all the time along with other occupational names from Parker to Forester.
 One notable historical Fletcher is Fletcher Christian, the British seaman and mutineer portrayed on the screen at various times by Errol Flynn, Clark Gable, Marlon Brando and Mel Gibson. A musical namesake is Fletcher Henderson, who was important in the development of big band jazz and swing music.

Fletcher

Devilishly handsome, Devin arrived as Kevin was moving out. Not to be confused (though it often is) with the English place-name Devon. While both Devin and Devon are flagging somewhat for boys, the names have dropped out of the Top 1000 for girls, making it more a masculine and less a unisex name these days.

Devin

Cute but cool, fresh but familiar, Ozzy was one of the fastest-rising boy names of 2021 and has continued to rise in the US and the UK ever since. While hard-core rocker Ozzy Osbourne might not be everyone's idea of a role model, his nickname name, along with others like it (think Iggy, Ziggy and Izzy) are forging their own way up the charts. 
 
Derived from the Old English element os meaning "God" or "divine", or from the Irish oss meaning "deer", Ozzy can also be spelled as Ozzie, or for those outside of Australia, Aussie. It could work as a nickname for oldy-worldy Oswald or Osmond, or for popular Oscar and Biblical Ozias. 
 
Currently in the UK Top 500 and the US Top 650, it was given to 470 American boys in 2024, along with an increasing number of girls.

Ozzy

Emir can be a title of honor in Arabic-speaking nations. In Turkey and the Balkan countries, Emir is one of the fairly popular <a href="https://nameberry.com/baby-names/486/arabic-names-for-boys">Arabic names for boys</a>.

Emir

The mostly Americanized version of Geoffrey was a trendy mid-century hit, with nickname Jeff the epitome of cool. Jeffrey entered the pop list in 1934 and was a Top 20 name from the mid-fifties to 1978.
 There are lots of Jeffrey/Jeff namesakes to reference--Actors Jeff Bridges and Jeff Daniels, writers Jeffrey Archer and Jeffrey Eugenides and race car driver Jeff Gordon.

Jeffrey

Ledger, another surname-turned-first name, carries associations of the great and late Australian actor Heath Ledger. It appeared on the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2017, perhaps bolstered by the potential of Lej and Edge as nicknames, and its similarity to Legend. 
 
An English surname, it derives from the Germanic Ludger, meaning "people's spear", though it could be considered a word name, associated with a book to keep (often financial) records in.
 Ledger is also the main character in Ingrid Law's novel Scumble.

Ledger

Chosen is officially a baby name thanks to Carolina Panthers quarterback Cam Newton, who chose (can't resist) the word as the name of his newborn son.
 
While it may inspire bad puns, Chosen is actually a pretty good word name: It's got the two-syllable, n-ending sound that is so fashionable for boys' names, plus a positive, affirming meaning. And if Saint and Messiah can be baby names, why not Chosen? And there's no reason it can't also work for girls.

Chosen

Despite its distinguished pedigree and popularity in Israel, Disney's Little Mermaid cartoonized Ariel in the US, at least in some people's minds. But it was used for a male character in Shakespeare's The Tempest centuries ago.

 More recently, cool short form Ari has come into prominence via the character in Entourage, plus its similarity to short, breezy Biblical names like Levi and Eli. 

 Though Ariel has been on the rise for boys in recent years and flat for girls, the gender divide still leans heavily toward the feminine. But with parents increasingly drawn to uncommon Biblical boy names – especially those with that strong and gentle -iel ending – we think that gap could be set to narrow in the coming years.

Ariel

Morgan, once split evenly between the sexes, is a strong and attractive Welsh favorite, still a common <a href="https://nameberry.com/boys-names">boys’ name</a> in Wales. Morgan is now more often a girls' name in the U.S. – about 2000 girls were given the name in one recent year, vs. 362 boys – though it's one of the most traditional unisex choices. Morgan was actually a Top 200 pick for boys in Victorian Britain!
 Distinguished actor Morgan Freeman is a worthy male namesake.

Morgan

Two-syllable boy names are the most prevalent in the complete lexicon of male names in Anglophone cultures, with more than 15,000 choices on this complete list of every boys' name on Nameberry with two syllables.

, with the top two boy names Liam and Noah having two syllables each. Other common choices include Henry, Jackson, and Ethan.

 with two syllables include Orson, Roscoe, and Altan. Click here for a hand-curated list of the 

full list of over 15,000 two-syllable male names

, ordered by their current rank on Nameberry.

Two-Syllable Boy Names with meanings, origins, and popularity, including top two syllable names for boys and unique boy names with 2 syllables. (Page 20)

15,000+ Two-Syllable Boy Names