Short, Nontraditional Middle Names for Girls

If you’re from a certain generation, you can probably take a few guesses and manage to land on the middle names of most of your friends. Ann, Lynn, Lee, Marie, Elizabeth, Rose or Grace are all pretty good bets. Maybe you even have one of these middle names yourself. While they’re beautiful and often represent a family lineage, you have plenty of options if you’re looking for something different.

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We chose the names ahead because they’re on the shorter side but still totally beautiful, which makes them ideal for pairing with a huge number of first names.

Often, longer first names work well with shorter middle names, but sometimes, parents simply prefer grouping names with a similar sound. For example, if you’re planning to name your baby Isabella, you might consider a short middle name like Flo or Bree or even something more creative, like Snow. Or if you’re planning to name her Charlotte, you might consider a middle name with the same number of syllables, such as Joelle, Regan, Vada or Kyra.

More: Printable Guide to Solve Your Baby-Naming Squabbles

While we have included a few more traditional choices below, like May, most of these names are a little off-the-beaten path and may inspire you to stray even further from the path as you assemble your baby name list. Also, there’s no reason these wouldn’t make a perfect first name, either.