Short, Vowel-Heavy Girls Names

Kyle is stronger and sharper, though many parents will prefer the more distinctly feminine Kyla for their daughters. Kyla may owe much of its popularity to trendy cousin Kayla.

Popular pop name, inspired by Australian singer Kylie Minogue. It was at its height in Australia in the 1970s and early 80s; often cited as a Noongar name meaning "boomerang".

The girls' name Kyra sounds like the also popular Keira/Kiera, but has a different root. There are twice as many baby girls named Keira as Kyra, with Kiera in third place. Kyra now ranks at #590 and is most familiar via actress Kyra Sedgwick.

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.

Lane is a unisex name equally accessible to boys and girls. As a common surname, Lane is attached to such celebrities as Diane and Nathan.

A kind of old-fashioned nickname name that's enjoying some fresh life thanks to trendy brother Lane. Lainie is a more old-school spelling.

A lovely musical name (remember the old Eric Clapton-Derek & the Dominos song?), Layla's seen a significant surge in popularity, partly partly all names with a double L are stylish, and partly because all the forms of the name push it into the Top 15 for girls.

While traditionally pronounced as a homonym for Lee, Glee actress Lea Michele pronounces her name like Leah, and it may also rhyme with Freya. Regardless of your preferred pronunciation, it's interesting to note that Lea has always charted in the US Top 1000, despite coming close to the bottom a few times, making it one of the girl names starting with L that both fits in and stands out.

Strong but sweet, Leah is a classic name that doesn’t feel dull or dusty. It’s got plenty of dignity, grace, and pluck, making it a solid choice in the 21st century.

Leda is that rare name that has not yet been discovered in the current craze for ancient names from mythology. In classical Greek myth, Leda was a great beauty who mothered another great beauty, Helen of Troy. Leda is at once simple, deeply-rooted, and unique: Only 23 baby girls were named Leda in the US last year. A name used in several European countries, pronunciation is usually the straightforward lee-dah but the Italians say lay-dah.

Leila was popularized in the West by the poet Byron, who used it in his poem Don Juan for a ten-year-old Turkish girl. Leila also appears as a fairy in the Gilbert & Sullivan comic opera Iolanthe.

This pet form of Helena and other ena-ending names, long used as an independent name, is attracting notice again as an option both multicultural and simple. Lena was a Top 100 name from 1880 to 1920.

Leta has hipster cred as the daughter of cool mommy blogger Dooce. Related to the Greek mythological Leda, a great beauty who mothered another great beauty, Helen of Troy, Leta is a name that's as unique as it is historic: Only 14 baby girls were named Leta in the US last year, and 18 were named Leda. Pronunciation is lee-tah.

Lexi and Lexie, pixieish offshoots of the prolific Alex family, have come into their own. While it's on a gentle downslope, Lexi still ranks in the US Top 500.

There were over 1000 baby girls named Lexi -- just Lexi -- in 2015, versus only 72 named Lexy. The reason that Lexi wins: Many parents see the i ending as more feminine for a nickname-name that might be considered unisex.

Leya is a simple, attractive multicultural choice, but with some teasing peril. The "Star Wars" princess spelled her name Leia.

Used throughout Europe and in Hawaii, Lia sounds just like its mother name Leah, but looks particularly pretty on paper. Sleek and simple, Lia is an internationally flexible choice that might also be short for such names as Amelia or Dahlia.

Lila is one of the girl names with a double l sound — Lila, Lola, Layla, Leila, Lily et al — that have caught on in a major way., Delicate yet dynamic, Lila has a slightly international flair.

Lilou is a charming, rarely heard import. Occitan is a language spoken in Provence, in the south of France, in which the suffix "ou" denotes a pet form — thus, Lilou as a short form of Liliane or its Occitan form Liliana or Liliano. Its popularity in France--where it's currently Number 12--can be traced to the 1997 film The Fifth Element.

Elvis naming his daughter Lisa Marie and Nat King Cole's hit song "Mona Lisa" conspired to catapult one of Elizabeth's many offshoots to a high of #4 in 1970.