Name Spellings, Initials and Sounds
Three Letter Names
Across 13 pages
of 13
Ren
Japanese, Latin
"water lily, lotus, romantic love, move forward; reborn"
A very popular unisex name in Japan, Ren is a concise and versatile choice that could work across multiple languages. A rising star in England and Wales where it ranks in the Top 1000, it is also on…
Isa
Germanic, Persian, or diminutive of Isabel
"ice; strong-willed; pledged to God"
Isa is a name unto itself as both a Persian name meaning "strong-willed" and as Germanic one derived from the element is meaning "ice". It can also be a short form of Isabel, Isabella, Isadora,…
Lin
Chinese, Arabic, Burmese, Korean, English
"forest; jade, green gem; soft, tender; clear, bright; neighbor; pretty, lake"
Concise, multicultural, and well travelled, Lin is a deceptively simple looking choice with its roots in a variety of languages. As a Chinese name, it is a unisex option, pronounced as LEEN, and…
Bay
English word, Old English
"an inlet of the sea where the land curves inward; berry"
One of the most usable of the pleasant, newly adopted nature/water names (like Lake and Ocean), especially in middle position. It's gentle, slightly whimsical, but grounded by its similarity to May…
Doc
English word name
A boy with this name is certain to be bombarded with "What's up, doc?" every day of his life. Even Doctor would be preferable.
Elm
English, German, Norse, Danish tree name
"red, brown"
Strong, straight, and leafy, one of the new tree names used mostly as middles.
Oak
English tree name
"tree from the genus Quercus"
Oak, a symbol of solidity, strength, and longevity, is joining Cedar and Pine as a viable name, one that would work especially well in the middle. If you'd prefer to take the longer route to the…
Fae
Spelling variation of Faye, English
"fairy"
Now that Faye is back on the Top 1000 after a decades-long absence, its spelling variations are being revived as well. Fae was given to nearly as many baby girls last year as Fay and may be…
Fig
Fruit name
Fig was the unlikely name of a beautiful character in Curtis Sittenfeld's Man of My Dreams . It could make a playful middle name or a sparky nickname for the likes of Philippa, Fiona, Felicity, and…
Fox
Animal name
Fox is one animal name backed by a longish tradition, and then popularized via the lead character Fox Mulder on X Files . Fox is simple, sleek, and a little bit wild, and could make an interesting…
Law
Law is a masculine name with multiple origins and meanings. As an English surname-turned-first-name, it derives from the Old English 'hlaw' meaning 'hill' or as a shortened form of Lawrence, meaning…
Nox
Paz
Hebrew; Spanish
"gold; peace"
Paz, currently represented by actresses Paz Vega and Paz de la Huerts, would make a sparkling middle name choice. It originated as a title of the Virgin Mary, Our Lady of Peace, and is one of the…
Pax
Latin
"peaceful"
Pax, one of the variations of names meaning peace that are newly popular in these less-than-peaceful times, got a lot of publicity when chosen by Brad & Angelina for their Vietnamese-born son.…
Lux
Latin
"light"
This name of a character played by Kirsten Dunst in the movie Virgin Suicides , originally a novel by Jeffrey Eugenides, is gaining attention, also thanks to the heroine Lux, Lady of Luminosity in…
Tag
English word name
"a label attached to something for identification"
Tag is unique word name introduced by the Sweet Home sextuplets. One of the boys is named Tag Bricker. There is also a character named Tag in Elin Hilderbrand's novel turned Netflix Series The…
Tre
Tre is a short, modern name with several possible origins. It may be a shortened form of names containing the 'tre' element, such as Trevor or Tremaine. Alternatively, it could derive from the…
Rye
Diminutive of Ryder or Riley or word name, English
"cavalryman, messenger; rye"
Rye has the potential to become the masculine version of Rue—a short and sweet name for nature lovers (and whiskey fans too!). Rye might be short for Ryder or Riley or Rylan or any Ry-beginning name,…
Fen
English, Dutch, Frisian
"marshland; peace"
In English, a fen is a wetland fed by surface and/or groundwater. In Dutch and Frisian, it's a traditional diminutive of names containing the element frid , meaning "peace". Either way, Fen makes a…
Red
Color name
Fiery but slight middle name choice; much more apt to be a redhead's nickname.