5 Letter Girl Names

This variant of Gianna has been in the US Top 1000 for most of the 21st century and hit a peak in 2010 at Number 568. The original spelling outranks the trimmed down version by far.
 Giana Roberge is an American former professional cyclist.

Giana

This is the original, more prosaic spelling, but the airier Claire now dominates.
 If you're seeking a literary connection, look no further than Nella Larsen's 1929 novel Passing, which stars Clare Kendry as one of the two protagonists.

Clare

One of the many, many ways to spell Aliya. The "leia" component gives Aleia an extra pronunciation option, like Leia with an extra syllable.

Aleia

Mexican-born actress Salma Hayek lends a large dollop of glamour to this name that would otherwise resemble the middle-aged Selma.

Salma

Borrowed from the term of endearment darling, Darla (and the related Darlene) have been in use long enough that they now sound more name-y than cutesy and twee. It might help too that it rhymes with the likes of Carla and Arla. 
 
Darla was at its peak in the US back in the 1960s when it ranked at #165 in the US, possibly thanks to actress Darla Hood, who appeared in the show Our Gang in the 1930s and 40s, and it has also appeared in the shows The Bold and the Beautiful and Buffy the Vampire Slayer.
 
Appearing in the Top 1000 in England and Wales since the mid-2010s, it made a return to the US charts in 2025 after a 40 year absence, alongside other retro choices like Arlette, Andie, Honey, and Ruthie.

Darla

A bright, airy choice, Elara appears in Greek mythology and is borne by a lover of Zeus who gave birth to a giant son called Tityos. One of Jupiter's moons is named after her, adding a celestial feel to the name and an appealing connection to astronomy.
 
Possibly derived from the Greek alara meaning "hazelnut" or "spear", it combines that favorite El- beginning with the popular -ara ending of Clara, Lara, and Amara, making it an alluring choice. A recent year saw it make the UK Top 500, while in the US, it placed just outside the Top 1000, given to 208 girls.
 
For now, it could make a fresher and less popular alternative to Ella, Lyra, or Laura, though it may end up feeling more popular than it is, thanks to a number of similar sounding choices: Elora, Eliora, Alora, and Alara. 
 
Additionally, the rise of AI may also have an impact on Elara's future popularity. People who use AI to do creative work for them have noted that the tool has a surprising tendency to give characters the name Elara. For a more in-depth exploration as to why this might be, <a href="https://namerology.com/2025/12/15/2025-name-of-the-year-is-elara-the-favorite-name-of-ai/">check out this article here</a>, but to summarize, it's likely because Elara is a good blend of familiar but unknown: part down-to-earth-part-magical. 
 
Elena, Clara, and Maya are more AI favorites, but given that fewer people will have heard Elara before, the use of it by AI may boost it up the charts as a new and interesting choice. Alternatively, however, it may send it plummeting downwards, tangling it up with the frustrations, concerns, and despair many feel towards AI generated content and AI in general. 
 
If you are just discovering Elara because of the AI connection (or its subsequent award of Name of the Year 2025), it is a legitimate and established name with a history of its own. It's also not quite so rare as some news sources are suggesting: in the US, a recent year saw it rank alongside Harriet, Carolyn, Gaia, and Shay, while in the UK it features besides Celeste, Libby, Joy, and Sabrina.

Elara

Zaria, the name of the Nigerian capital city, could be another Z name for parents to consider. It currently ranks lower than variations Zariah and Zariyah.
 Popular 1990s sitcom The Parent 'Hood included a character by the name.

Zaria

Sweet but spiky, Anika is a multicultural choice with broad appeal. Familiar in the UK, Czechia, Poland, and the US, it is in the Top 100 in Slovenia. It is additionally popular in Bangladesh, India, Indonesia, and the Netherlands.
 
From its Dutch, German, Slovene, Polish, Danish, and English roots, Anika is a diminutive of Anne or Ana, lending it the meaning "grace" or "gracious". Pronounced as AH-nee-kah in Dutch and German, A-nee-kah in Slovene, and as ANN-ih-kuh, AHN-ih-kuh, or ONN-ih-kuh in English, it could work across multiple languages, though the exact pronunciation might need prompting sometimes. An alternative spelling is Annika, the ore popular choice in Estonia 
 
From its Hindi and Sanskrit roots, it can mean "army, troops" and "splendour" and would likely be pronounced as uh-nee-kah, without emphasis on any of the syllables. Additionally, the name is used as a Hawaiian form of Anita (said a-NI-ka, and another variation of Anne); a Japanese name meaning "second, Asia + new + song" (said AH-NEE-KAH); and a spelling variant of the Arabic Aniqah, meaning "stylish, neat".

Anika

The fastest-rising boy name of 2021 is now among the fastest-rising girl names of 2022, both thanks to the rise of luxury fashion brand AMIRI. A commonly used name in Māori culture, Amiri refers to the wind that blows from east to west. In the US, it's more often seen as a variation of the Arabic and Hebrew name Amir and Amira. 

Amiri

Simple and melodic, this spelling offers an alternative to the more-popular Aliyah or Aaliyah -- the name of the late R&B singer who propelled the name into the US Top 100. 

Aleah

In a wave of vintage nickname revivals, cutesy Maisie — traditionally a nickname for Margaret or Mary — has been rising fast in recent years. And along for the ride are spelling variations Maisy and Mazie. Mazie recently entered the US Top 1000 in 2023, and while this spelling may seem the most modern, Mazie actually charted every year up until 1944.

Mazie

To some, Nancy is a sweet, sparkly, vintage choice with plenty of energy and style. For it strays too much into '"old-lady" territory to be cool again yet. It's out of fashion in France, New Zealand, and Canada; it lingers towards to bottom of the US charts. In the UK however, Nancy has been a Top 100 name for nearly a decade where it fits right in with Evie, Mabel, and Pippa.
 
Nancy originated as a contraction of "mine Ancy", with Ancy being a nickname for name Annis, a Medieval English variant of Agnes. Later, in the 18th century, it began to be used as a nickname for Ann too, but also as a name within its own right. This could give it the possibly meanings of "my pure and holy one" or "my grace". 
 It is also a French place name, though in this case, the name is likely derived from Nanciao, a Ghaulish personal name, which came from nanto, meaning "river or valley" in Proto-Celtic.
 
As a name in its own right, it has always been in the US Top 1000, peaking between 1931 and 1962 when it remained in the Top 20. In 1940 alone, Nancy was given to about 20,000 baby girls. In recent years, however it has been on a downward trend, and as of 2023, it was given to 280 girls, holding on to just a small fraction of the sway in held in the mid-century. 
 
Today, it might feel like a distinctly British choice then, nickname-y and old-fashioned, but pleasing to say and easy to spell. It also has a couple of interesting variations itself, such as Nan, Nance, Nanette, Nanny, Nansi, and Nanou.
 

Nancy is a major character in Oliver Twist and is fondly remembered by some as Nancy Drew, girl detective, while contemporary kids are enjoying the Fancy Nancy series. Frank Sinatra paid tribute to his daughter with the song "Nancy with the Laughing Face." Nancy also has political ties, via the mother of Abraham Lincoln, the wife of Ronald Reagan (born Anne), and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi.

Nancy

Arden, the name of the magical forest in Shakespeare's As You Like It, is a stylish A name with a strong, straightforward image. Another reason to love Arden: its similarity to "ardent." Arden is solidly unisex, with the current gender distribution running about 49 percent girls and 51 percent boys.

 A locational surname name deriving from several places in England, there are multiple legitimate derivations for this name. One is from Old English earn "eagle" + denu "valley", while another is from the Celtic ard meaning "high".

 As a girl name, Arden has been flirting with the bottom of the Top 1000 for a number of years, just missing out in a recent count when it was given to 237 girls. A solid Nameberry favorite, it currently ranks in the UK Top 800 for boys, where is leans notably more masculine (15:85)

 Arden is more familiar as a surname, as in cosmetics entrepreneur Elizabeth and actress Eve, and the narrative poem by Tennyson, Enoch Arden, along with Shakespeare's mother, Mary Arden. 
 
A notable first name bearer is Arden Cho, actress and singer, and the voice of a lead character in hit movie, KPOP Demon Hunters, while social media influencer Lacey Douthat (of The Glitter Gospel) named her daughter Arden Laine in 2025.

Arden

A popular Japanese name for both sexes that's migrated to the West because of its appearance in manga and video games and because of its international feel. It was a fast rising choice in 2024, when it entered the Top 1000.

Akira

Appearing in the US Top 1000 and popular among Spanish speaking families, Arely may be one of two things: a twist on the Hebrew masculine name, Areli, or a shortened form of the Spanish Araceli. 
 
If you choose to relate it to its Hebrew origins, Arely means "lion of God" and appears in the Bible on a minor character. Pronounced as ah-REE-lye, it is reminiscent of Eli, Ariel, and Malachi.
 
If you choose to see it as a contracted form of Araceli, then it has the celestial meaning "sky altar" and it is likely this origin that Hispanic parents had in mind when choosing it. In this case, the pronunciation would be ah-reh-LEE. 
 
Also spelled as Areli, it is the Arely spelling that currently makes the charts in the US, given to around 260 babies in a recent year.

Arely

Skyla is the most feminine form of the Skylar / Sklyer trend - little Skyla will never be mistaken on paper for a boy.

Skyla

Not quite a nature name and not quite a surname — whatever Laken is or isn't, we know it's definitely a name to watch.

Laken

Kaiya might have peaked in 2002 and has since fallen behind its sisters Kaya and Kaia, however, in recent years, it has been slowing climbing back up the charts.
 A fast rising choices in the UK in 2023, Kaiya is notably born by Kaiya Jones, a Scottish-born Australian actress best known for her work on Australian soap opera Neighbours. Footballer Kaiya Jota, basketballer Kaiya Wynn, and figure skater Kaiya Ruiter are others.

Kaiya

Scout, a character nickname from To Kill a Mockingbird (her real name was Jean Louise), became a real-life possibility when Bruce Willis and Demi Moore used it for their now-grown middle daughter, followed by Tom Berenger a few years later. 
 
It was picked by skater Tai Babilonia for her son and Kerri Walsh for her daughter Scout Margery. A unisex choice that is growing in popularity for both genders—but given to girls about four times more often than to boys.
 It makes a virtuous, upstanding choice for a girl—a good scout. Scout entered the US Top 1000 for the first time in 2018.

Scout

Likely boosted by its similarity to fast-rising names Rhea, Raya, and Freya, enough parents chose this sweet and simple name in 2023 to push it into the US Top 1000 for the first time. 

Reya

Five letter girl names are led by the longtime top name Emily. Sofia, the Latinate spelling of Sophia popular in the US and throughout the Spanish-speaking world, is another top girl name with five letters.

girl names with five letters ranking in the US Top 200 

include Avery, Grace, Chloe, Layla, Riley, Ellie, Alexa, Hazel, and Sarah.


Classics Alice, Lydia, Clara, Julia, Edith, and Maria are all five letter girl names, as are the trendier Sadie, Piper, Kylie, and Quinn.

 on our recommended list include Anouk, Aziza, Celia, Darcy, Elsie, Mercy, Olive, Petra, and Tansy.


Browse our entire menu of five letter names for girls here, ranked according to their current popularity on Nameberry. 

Five letter names for baby girls, with top name Emily and both popular and unique girl names with 5 letters, including meanings, origins, and popularity (Page 12)

Five Letter Girl Names