Thailand gives its daughters two names. The formal one on the birth certificate is usually built from Sanskrit or Pali roots and carries a meaning the parents chose deliberately. The second, the chue len, is a one-syllable nickname that friends, teachers and colleagues actually use.
These 105 Thai girl names are the formal kind, the ones with meanings worth knowing. Expect flowers, moonlight, gemstones and Buddhist virtues, plus a pronunciation guide on every entry so you are never guessing at the vowels.
Where United States birth records have something to say about a name, we have added the figure. Those numbers cover American births only and say nothing about how common a name is inside Thailand.
105 Cute Thai Names for Girls
Every entry below carries its meaning, origin, and pronunciation, plus a U.S. popularity figure wherever the federal birth records have one.
Popularity at a Glance
The most popular names on this list in the United States, 1965 to 2025: Amara, Anya, Ariya, Mai and Ananya.
Amara
Amara is the rare name that lands softly in several languages at once. Thai reads it as immortal or undying, the Igbo of Nigeria hear grace, and in Japan it can be read as heaven. That overlap is exactly why it travels so well. American parents have noticed, and the climb has been steep rather than gradual. If you want a Thai connection your daughter will never have to spell twice, this is it.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit, Japanese, Igbo
- Meaning: Immortal, undying, grace, heaven
- Pronunciation: a-ma-RA
- Variations: Ammara
- Namesakes: Amara Asavananda, a Thai actress and second runner-up of Miss Thailand in 1953.
- Popularity: #98 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (2,630 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Rising in the United States, up 298% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Amporn
Amporn puts two Thai words together, am (to hide) and phon (blessing), for a name that means a blessing you did not see coming. Thai families have used it for generations, most visibly for national volleyball player Amporn Hyapha. The stress lands on the second syllable, am-PAWN, which keeps a quiet name from sounding clipped in English.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Hidden blessing
- Pronunciation: am-PAWN
- Namesakes: Amporn Hyapha, a member of the Thailand Women’s National Volleyball Team.
Ananya
Ananya crosses between India and Thailand without changing its meaning, without equal, from Sanskrit. It reads unisex across Bengali-speaking regions but is firmly feminine in Thailand, which is how most families outside Asia will hear it too. American use peaked around 2009 and has thinned since, so it is recognizable without being common. The short forms do a lot of work here: Ana, Ann, and Anya all sit naturally underneath it.
- Origin: Sanskrit, Bengali, Indian, Odia, Thai
- Meaning: Unique, matchless
- Pronunciation: a-nan-YA
- Namesakes: Ananya Mongkolthai, crowned Miss Supranational of Thailand in 2014. Ananya Panday, an Indian actress, featured in Hindi films Student of the Year 2 (2019) and Gehraiyaan (2002).
- Popularity: #3,105 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (52 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Falling in the United States, down 36% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Anchali
Anchali comes from the Sanskrit anjali, a respectful salutation made with the palms pressed together. Naming a daughter Anchali is close to naming her Greeting, in the warmest possible sense. It is ordinary enough in Thailand to raise no eyebrows there and genuinely unusual everywhere else, most often spelled Anchalee on a Thai passport.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Salutation, greeting
- Pronunciation: an-cha-LEE
- Variations: Anchalee
- Namesakes: Anchali Sirachaya, a Thai actress and runner-up for Miss Thailand in 1964.
Anong
Anong means beautiful woman in Thai, and unlike many of its neighbors on this list it gives an English speaker nothing to trip over. Three sounds, a-NONG, done. It turns up across Thailand, Laos and Indonesia but almost never in Europe or the Americas, which makes it that rare thing: easy to say and hardly ever heard.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Beautiful woman
- Pronunciation: a-NONG
Anya
Anya is the crossover pick of this list. Thai traces it to an, meaning different or other, Russian speakers know it as the everyday short form of Anna, and plenty of American parents chose it for the sound alone. It has held a place in the U.S. top 400 for years and reached its highest yearly count on record in 2025, which is unusual for a name this established. Your daughter will meet other Anyas, but she will never have to repeat herself.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit, Russian
- Meaning: Different
- Pronunciation: AHN-ya
- Namesakes: Anya Geraldine, an Indonesian actress, internet celebrity, and model featured in the horror film Tusuk Jelangkung di Lubang Buaya.
- Popularity: #375 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (821 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Falling in the United States, down 16% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Aokbab
Aokbab belongs to Thai actress Chutimon “Aokbab” Chuengcharoensukying, who used it long before Bad Genius made her famous in 2017. In Thailand it works as a nickname rather than a legal name, which is true of several shorter entries here, and the meaning, roughly to design, suits a child you expect to build things. Outside Thailand it makes a good middle name, where the unusual vowel pairing is a feature rather than a daily obstacle.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: To design
- Pronunciation: awk-BEP
- Namesakes: Chutimon “Aokbab” Chuengcharoensukying, a Thai actress and model best known for her role as Lynn in the 2017 film Bad Genius.
Aphinya
Aphinya is the Thai form of the Sanskrit abhijna, a Buddhist term for the higher knowledge that comes from meditation and disciplined living. It is a serious name, and Thai families choose it deliberately rather than for its sound. Apinya is the more common spelling in Latin script, carried by actress Apinya Sakuljaroensuk. Say it a-peen-YA and let the middle syllable do the lifting.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Knowledge, higher awareness
- Pronunciation: a-peen-YA
- Variations: Apinya
- Namesakes: Apinya Sakuljaroensuk
Aree
Aree means kind and generous, which is about as direct a wish as a name can carry. It is the Thai counterpart to Ari, and kickboxing world champion Zaza Sor. Aree carries it into a sport where the meaning reads as a pleasant contradiction. English speakers usually land on it correctly at first attempt, since it follows the familiar Kaylee and Ashlee pattern.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Kind, generous
- Pronunciation: aa-REE
- Variations: Ari
- Namesakes: Zaza Sor. Aree (birth name Angsana Kamhanphol), a Thai kickboxer and former women’s flyweight world champion. Aree Song, a Korean pro-golfer.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2024 at #15,524 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Rising in the United States, up 33% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Ariya
Ariya is the Thai and Indonesian form of Arya, meaning noble. Thailand knows it best through golfer Ariya Jutanugarn, who reached world number one in 2017. In the United States the name has more than tripled over the past decade of births and now sits just outside the top 600, which puts it in the useful middle ground of fashionable but not saturated. Ari and Riya both work as everyday short forms. Thailand uses Ariya for boys as well, so it lands as unisex at home and reads feminine almost everywhere else.
- Origin: Thai, Indonesian
- Meaning: Aryan, noble
- Pronunciation: a-ree-YAH
- Variations: Arya
- Namesakes: Ariya Jutanugarn, a Thai pro-golfer, ranked the #1 player in the Women’s World Golf Rankings of 2017.
- Popularity: #615 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (476 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Rising in the United States, up 202% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Baifern
Baifern is Thai for the leaf of a fern, and it belongs to actress Pimchanok “Baifern” Luevisafpaibul, who has used it publicly since Crazy Little Thing Called Love in 2010. Like most Thai plant names it began as a nickname and stuck. For a family that already names its houseplants, this is the natural next step.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Fern leaf
- Pronunciation: bye-FERN
- Namesakes: Pimchanok “Baifern” Luevisafpaibul, a Thai actress and model, best known as the lead in the 2010 film Crazy Little Thing Called Love.
Banyen
Banyen is the Thai name for the marvel of Peru, a flower that opens at dusk and scents the garden through the night. Singer Banyen Rakkaen made it familiar across Thailand as a queen of mor lam music. The image is the real appeal, and the name is long enough to feel formal while shortening easily to Ben or Yen.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Evening blossom
- Pronunciation: ban-YEHN
- Namesakes: Banyen Rakkaen, a Thai singer known as the queen of the Thai mor lam style of music.
Bongkoj
The lotus sits at the center of Thai Buddhist practice, offered at temples and painted into almost every mural, so Bongkoj arrives with a great deal of meaning already attached. Actress Bongkoj Khongmalai has carried it since the 2004 drama Ai-Fak. The spelling looks harder than the name sounds. Thai families reach for lotus names for one reason above all: the flower rises clean out of muddy water, which is a decent thing to wish on a child. Bongkoj is the most ornate of the three lotus names on this page, with Nalin and Ubon the plainer options.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Lotus
- Pronunciation: bong-ko-JAY
- Namesakes: Bongkoj Khongmalai, a Thai actress, model, and producer known for her role in the 2004 drama, Ai-Fak.
Buppha
Buppha means flowers, plainly and without decoration, and it is one of the softest-sounding names on this list. It carries a real spread of spellings, from Buppa to Boopha, so pick the one that reads best in your alphabet and stay with it. Danish-Thai filmmaker Buppha Witt and Cambodian princess Norodom Buppha Devi are its two most visible bearers, and a spring baby would wear this floral name well.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Flowers, blooms, blossoms
- Pronunciation: boop-PA
- Variations: Buppa, Bupha, Bupa, Booppa, Boopha, Boopa
- Namesakes: Buppha Witt, a Danish actress, and filmmaker born in Thailand. Norodom Buppha Devi, a Cambodian princess, dancer, and director of the Royal Ballet of Cambodia.
Butsarakham
Butsarakham means yellow sapphire, and Thailand has a mountain named for it, Doi Butsarakham in Phayao province. It is four syllables and makes no apology for them. Sapphire is September’s birthstone, which gives autumn babies a neat extra reason to consider it. If the full name is too much for daily use, Kham is the natural short form and sounds nothing like a diminutive. Six accepted transcriptions are in circulation, so settle on one before the birth certificate is filled in.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Yellow sapphire
- Pronunciation: boot-sa-ra-KAM
- Variations: Butsarakam, Bussarakham, Bussarakam, Busarakham, Busarakam, Budsarakham
Chalita
Chalita means shining or bright, and depending on the source it stretches to splendid or prosperous. Miss Universe Thailand 2016 winner Chalita Suansane is its most recent ambassador. Your daughter would almost certainly be the only Chalita in her school, since the name has been absent from American birth records for decades. Jalita is the alternate spelling, and the J and the Ch are the same Thai sound. It shortens comfortably to Lita or Chali if three syllables feel like a lot alongside the Hannahs and Sophias in her class.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Shining, bright
- Pronunciation: cha-lee-TA
- Variations: Jalita
- Namesakes: Chalita Suansane, a Thai model, actress, and winner of Miss Universe Thailand 2016.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 1983 at #9,195 (6 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Chaluai
Thai parents pick names for the qualities they hope to see, and Chaluai is one of the plainest examples: beautiful, elegant and graceful, all three at once. The pronunciation, cha-LWIE, folds the last two vowels into a single glide, and that is the only part English speakers usually get wrong. Chaluay is the alternative spelling if the first looks cluttered, though neither has ever been picked up abroad.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Beautiful, elegant, graceful
- Pronunciation: cha-LWIE
- Variations: Chaluay
Chariya
Chariya means conduct or behavior, and Thailand and Cambodia both use it for boys and girls. Its best-known bearer is a man, race car driver Chariya Nuya, though the ending will read as feminine to most English speakers. Jariya and Jareeya are common alternate transcriptions of the same name, so decide early which one goes on the birth certificate.
- Origin: Thai, Cambodian
- Meaning: Conduct, behavior
- Pronunciation: cha-ree-YA
- Variations: Jariya, Chaerrya, Jareeya
- Namesakes: Chariya Nuya, a Thai race car driver for Billionaire Boys Racing.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2020 at #15,608 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Steady in the United States, down 12% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Chirawan
Chirawan joins chira (long-lasting) with wan (color), making it a name about a shade that does not fade. It has an unusually long list of spellings, Jirawan and Cheerawan among them, because Thai consonants map onto Latin letters more than one way. Wan works as a one-syllable short form. There is a practical bonus too: chee-ra-WAN is regular enough that people get it right after hearing it once. Seven spellings are in circulation, which is a lot even by Thai standards.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Long-lasting color
- Pronunciation: chee-ra-WAN
- Variations: Cheerawan, Chiravan, Cheeravan, Jirawan, Jeerawan, Jiravan, Jeeravan
Dao
Dao means star, and it is about as short as a Thai name gets. In Thailand it reads feminine, though American ears may hear it near the masculine Dow. Federal birth records logged it in real numbers only in the early 1980s and sporadically since, which makes it functionally unused in the United States. If you like celestial names but find Stella and Luna crowded, Dao is the same idea with none of the traffic. Laos and Chinese speakers use it too, which widens its reach without diluting the meaning.
- Origin: Thai, Lao, Chinese
- Meaning: Star
- Pronunciation: DOW
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. boys’ names in 2018 at #12,591 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Rising in the United States, up 50% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Davika
Davika builds little goddess out of Sanskrit parts, devi for goddess plus a diminutive ending. Thai actress Davika Hoorne has carried it since Ngao Kammathep in 2010 and is the reason most non-Thai people have heard it at all. The middle syllable takes the weight, da-wee-KA. American records list it only a handful of times, so it stays firmly in unusual territory.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Little goddess
- Pronunciation: da-wee-KA
- Namesakes: Davika Hoorne, a Thai actress and model who rose to fame after appearing in the 2010 TV series Ngao Kammathep.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2021 at #15,829 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Dokkaew
Dokkaew is the Thai name for orange jasmine, a hedge shrub that throws out small white flowers and a heavy evening scent. Broken into parts it reads as a flower made of diamonds, which is a fair description of the plant in bloom. The 2017 Thai series Dokkaew Kahlong gave it a recent lift at home, where it is also spelled Dokkaeo.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Flower of diamonds
- Pronunciation: dawk-KEW
- Variations: Dokkaeo
Dokmai
Dokmai means simply flower, and its literary weight comes from Dokmai Sot, the pen name of novelist Mom Luang Buppha Nimmanhemin. Writing before the Second World War, she built her books around the idea that social rank says nothing about a person’s worth. That is a lot of substance for a two-syllable name. Mai works on its own for daily use, and doubles as an entry further down this list.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Flower of a plant
- Pronunciation: dawk-MIE
Duangkamon
Duangkamon means from the heart, and it is proof that a long Thai name is not necessarily a hard one. Four syllables, no unusual sounds, and the stress falls where an English speaker expects it. Duangkamol is the same name with the softer final consonant Thai often prefers. Kamon is the obvious short form and sits close enough to Cameron to pass unremarked at an American school. Kamon also stands alone further down this list, so you effectively get two names out of one decision.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: From the heart
- Pronunciation: dwahng-ka-MON
- Variations: Duangkamol
Dusita
Dusita traces back to the Sanskrit tushita, the fourth heaven of Buddhist cosmology, and it carries the sense of contented. It is also the Thai name for a carnivorous bladderwort native to Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos, which is an unexpectedly tough plant to share a name with. Both readings work in its favor, and Dusit is the masculine form if you are naming siblings.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Contented, joyous
- Pronunciation: doo-see-TA
Emon
Emon means sweet or charming, and it is short, vowel-friendly and almost unheard of in the United States. It circulates most in Indonesia, with some use in Thailand and Bengal, so it is not tied to one culture. American use has actually been climbing, though from a very small base. Emorn and Em-On are the alternate spellings you will see on Thai documents. It is unisex, so a family naming siblings has it available in both directions.
- Origin: Thai, Bengali, Indonesian
- Meaning: Sweet, beautiful, charming, faith
- Pronunciation: eh-MAWN
- Variations: Emorn, Em-On, Em-Orn
- Popularity: #4,755 among U.S. boys’ names in 2025 (21 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Rising in the United States, up 73% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Fah
Fah is the Thai word for the sky, and specifically its pale blue. In a list where most names run three or four syllables, Fah runs one, which makes it the easiest entry here for an English-speaking family.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Light blue, sky
- Pronunciation: FAH
- Variations: Fa
Fatihah
Fatihah is the Thai and Malay form of the Arabic Fatiha, from fataha, to open. Al-Fatiha is the opening chapter of the Quran, which gives this name real religious weight for Muslim families. Thai Muslim families use it alongside other Arabic names. It appears exactly once in the entire American birth record.
- Origin: Thai, Arabic, Malay, Indonesian
- Meaning: Opener
- Pronunciation: FA-tee-hah
- Variations: Fatiha, Fatehah, Fateha
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2018 at #16,472 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Fon
Fon means rain, and Thai families traditionally give it to babies born during a downpour, which in Thailand covers a good part of the year. Actress Sananthachat “Fon” Thanapatpisal is its most visible modern bearer. One syllable sits well in front of a longer middle name. Spanish speakers may hear it as a short form of Alfonso, which is coincidence rather than shared history.
- Origin: Thai, Spanish
- Meaning: Rain, noble and ready
- Pronunciation: FAWN
- Namesakes: Sananthachat “Fon” Thanapatpisal, a Thai actress known for her role as Dao in Hormones: The Series and Smile in Boy For Rent (2019).
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. boys’ names in 1931 at #3,975 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Gam
Gam means well or brilliant in Thai and Lao, and it is carried by singer, actress and television host Gam Wichayanee. One syllable, one sound, nothing to explain at the school gate. Names this short usually work as nicknames inside Thailand, and that brevity is exactly what makes Gam usable as a given name elsewhere.
- Origin: Thai, Lao
- Meaning: Well, brilliant
- Pronunciation: GAM
- Namesakes: Gam Wichayanee, a Thai singer, actress, and TV host.
Hathaikan
Hathaikan joins hathai (heart, mind) to kan (dear, beloved), giving a name that lands on something like beloved heart. It runs long on paper and short in the mouth, ha-tie-KAN. The spelling variants mostly hinge on whether the transcriber wrote an r before the n, so Hathaikarn and Hataikan are the same name. Kan on its own makes a clean nickname.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Beloved heart
- Pronunciation: ha-tie-KAN
- Variations: Hathaikarn, Hataikan, Hataikarn, Hataikon, Hataikorn
Inthurat
Inthurat pairs inthu (moon) with rat (gem), so it reads as a jewel of the moon. Thai has a deep bench of moon names and this is one of the more ornate. If you are drawn to celestial names but find Luna and Stella crowded, it offers the same imagery with none of the traffic. Inturat is the shorter spelling.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Gem of the moon
- Pronunciation: een-too-RAT
- Variations: Inturat
Intira
Intira is the Thai form of Indira, a Sanskrit name meaning beauty or elegance. Actress Intira Charoenpura made it recognizable across Thailand with the 1999 ghost film Nang Nak. The sound is the selling point: een-tee-RA moves quickly and ends softly. Indira is the spelling that draws fewer follow-up questions abroad, but Intira is the Thai one.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Beauty
- Pronunciation: een-tee-RA
- Namesakes: Intira Charoenpura, a Thai actress best known for her role as Mae Nak in the 1999 horror film Nang Nak.
Itsara
Itsara means free or independent, and Thailand uses it for boys and girls alike. It belongs to a small group of names that state a value rather than describe a flower or a jewel, which is why it appeals to parents who want their daughter to be self-reliant. Issara and Isara are the same name with fewer letters. Sara sits inside it as a ready-made soft landing in English. The stress falls on the last syllable, eet-sa-RA, which is the pattern most names on this list follow.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Independent
- Pronunciation: eet-sa-RA
- Variations: Issara, Isara
Jarinee
Jarinee is an alternate transcription of Charini, from a Sanskrit root meaning one who behaves well. Screenwriter Jarinee Thanimyat put it in front of a large audience with F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers. The opening sound is closer to ch than to j, cha-ree-NEE, and that single detail is the most common mistake English speakers make with Thai names beginning in J. Jarin and Nee both work as short forms.
- Origin: Thai, Sinhalese, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Behavior, conduct
- Pronunciation: cha-ree-NEE
- Variations: Charini, Jarini
- Namesakes: Jarinee Thanimyat, a writer for the shows F4 Thailand: Boys over Flowers and 55:15 Never Too Late.
Jintara
Jintara means think or imagine, and Thailand knows it through mor lam and luk thung singer Jintara Poonlarp. It is popular at home and effectively undiscovered elsewhere, which is the exact gap most parents reading this page are looking for. The J is pronounced closer to ch, cheen-ta-RA. Jin and Tara are both waiting inside it, and Tara alone would pass unremarked anywhere in the English-speaking world. Chintara is the alternate spelling, and it is closer to how the name actually sounds.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Think, imagine
- Pronunciation: cheen-ta-RA
- Variations: Chintara
- Namesakes: Jintara Poonlarp, a Thai moor lam, luk thung, and pop music singer.
Jitra
Jitra carries bright and clear, and stretches to jewel or ornament depending on which source you follow. Its parent name Chitra circulates across Thailand, India and Bengal, while Jitra itself stays largely Thai. The consonant cluster is the tricky part, cheet-TRA, said quickly. Anyone collecting sunny names should look at it twice.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Bright, jewel
- Pronunciation: cheet-TRA
- Variations: Jittra, Jidtra, Chitra, Chittra, Chidtra
Kaew
Kaew means diamond, and it belongs to two members of Thai girl groups, Kaew Jarinya of FFK and Natruja “Kaew” Chutiwansopon of BNK48. One syllable, KEW, unisex at home, and English speakers get it right on the first try.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Diamond
- Pronunciation: KEW
- Variations: Kaeo
- Namesakes: Kaew Jarinya, a Thai singer from the girl group FFK. Natruja “Kaew” Chutiwansopon, a member of the Thai idol group BNK48.
Kamlai
Kamlai is the Thai word for a bracelet, which makes it one of the few adornment names on this list that is not a gemstone. It has stayed inside Thailand, unusually for a name this easy to say. Kam and Kammy are both available as nicknames and neither sounds imported, which makes this a strong candidate for a Thai American family that wants the heritage without the spelling lesson.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Bracelet
- Pronunciation: kam-LIE
Kamon
Kamon means heart and mind in Thai, and something entirely different in Japan, where a kamon is a family crest. In the United States it circulates mainly as a spelling of Cameron rather than as a Thai name. Federal records have listed it in 36 separate years since 1980, and only barely, which makes it the scarcest name here that the data sees at all. Unisex in Thailand, and short enough to survive any accent.
- Origin: Thai, Japanese, English
- Meaning: Heart and mind, crest
- Pronunciation: ka-MON
- Popularity: #12,957 among U.S. boys’ names in 2025 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Steady in the United States, down 14% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Kanya
Kanya means young woman, so it is a name a child grows into rather than out of. Actress Kanya Rattanapetch gave it a lift with the 2007 film Love of Siam. American use has thinned sharply over the past ten years, which pushes it toward rare rather than away from it. Whether that is an argument for or against depends entirely on how you feel about company. Kan works as a short form, though the full name is only two syllables to begin with.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Young woman
- Pronunciation: kan-YA
- Namesakes: Kanya Rattanapetch, a Thai model and actress best known for her role in the 2007 film Love of Siam.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2023 at #12,781 (7 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Falling in the United States, down 55% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Karuna
Karuna is compassion, specifically the active kind that does something about suffering, and it sits near the center of both Buddhist and Hindu thought. That gives it weight for families in India, Bengal and Thailand raising children in either tradition. It is also genuinely easy: three syllables, no unfamiliar sounds, ka-roo-NA. Few names on this list state so plainly what the parents are hoping for. It belongs to a small group here, alongside Itsara and Sawika, that names a virtue rather than a flower or a jewel.
- Origin: Sanskrit
- Meaning: Compassion, kindness, empathy
- Pronunciation: ka-roo-NA
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2020 at #16,289 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Steady in the United States, down 1% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Kessarin
Kessarin gathers an unusual set of meanings: a lion’s mane, the citron plant, the kampillaka herb used in Ayurvedic medicine, and a horse. It turns up in old Sanskrit literature and in the name of an Indian king of the Sulki line, so the name has a long paper trail. Thai actress and national taekwondo champion Kessarin Ektawatkul carried it through Born to Fight in 2004. Kess and Rin both work if three syllables feel like a lot. Kesarin is the shorter spelling. The mix of plant, animal and mineral readings means the name can be explained several different ways, which is either richness or vagueness depending on your mood.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit, Indian
- Meaning: Kampillaka plant, lion’s mane, citron plant, a horse
- Pronunciation: ket-sa-RIN
- Variations: Kesarin
- Namesakes: Kessarin Ektawatkul, a Thai actress and national taekwondo champion featured in several martial arts films, including Born to Fight (2004) and Dangerous Flowers (2006).
Kirana
Kirana means sunbeam, and also thread and dust, which together sketch something fine and light-catching. Sanskrit, Thai, Indonesian and Hindi naming traditions all use it, so it belongs to no single one. The real flexibility is in the short forms: Ki, Kiran, Rana, Ana and Kira all live inside it. Whatever kind of child you end up with, one of them will fit. Kiran is the unisex spelling used across South Asia, and Korono is the outlier you will occasionally meet.
- Origin: Sanskrit, Thai, Indonesian, Hindi, Indian
- Meaning: Dust, thread, sunbeam
- Pronunciation: kee-ra-NA
- Variations: Kiran, Korono
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2021 at #16,550 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Steady in the United States, down 5% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Kittiya
Kittiya comes from the Thai kitti, meaning fame or renown, and it has a quick, bright rhythm to match. Kit and Kitti are the ready-made short forms, and the second sounds exactly like Kitty, which will follow her through childhood whether you plan it or not. Kidtiya and Kitiya are the alternate spellings. If you like the meaning but not the nickname, Kitt on its own solves the problem.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Fame
- Pronunciation: keet-tee-YA
- Variations: Kitiya, Kidtiya
Kluaimai
Kluaimai is the Thai word for orchid, and Thailand is often called the land of orchids for good reason. Thai tradition reads the flower as love, beauty and passion, which is a lot of sentiment packed into two syllables of Thai and three of English. It is a genuine mouthful outside Thailand, klwie-MIE, so most families abroad would shorten it to Mai. It rewards the effort if you want something unmistakably Thai. Kluaymai is the alternate spelling. Nobody outside Thailand will guess it on sight, and that is the trade you are making.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Orchid
- Pronunciation: klwie-MIE
- Variations: Kluaymai
Kratae
Kratae is the Thai word for chipmunk, and it is exactly the kind of affectionate, slightly silly nickname Thai families hand out at birth. Luk thung singer Kratae R-Siam carried hers into a professional career, which is ordinary in Thailand and rare almost everywhere else. It suits a baby with round cheeks and keeps suiting her long after the cheeks go.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Chipmunk
- Pronunciation: kra-TAY
- Namesakes: Kratae R-Siam (born Tae Bunyalieang), a Thai luk thung singer.
Kulap
Kulap is the Thai word for rose, borrowed from Persian a long time ago, and it is unisex at home. Its most famous bearer was a man, the twentieth-century novelist and political writer Kulap Saipradit, though the meaning pulls the name feminine for most non-Thai ears. It is the one Persian import on this list. Two syllables and a soft ending make it among the easier picks here.
- Origin: Thai, Persian
- Meaning: Rose
- Pronunciation: koo-LAP
Kwang
Kwang means deer, and Thai families use it for boys and girls, usually as a nickname. Animal nicknames are ordinary in Thailand in a way they are not in English, so a Kwang there draws no comment at all. The vowel is the only obstacle for English speakers, and one correction generally fixes it. It suits a watchful, gentle child, which is the whole point of the name.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Deer
- Pronunciation: KWAHNG
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. boys’ names in 1978 at #6,347 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Laiat
Laiat means detailed or thorough, making it one of the few names in any language that praises carefulness. Thai naming leans hard on aspiration, and this is aspiration of a very particular kind. It is unisex, uncommon even in Thailand, effectively unused abroad, and said la-YAT.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Detailed
- Pronunciation: la-YAT
Laksanara
Laksanara combines laksana (characteristic, quality) with nara, which carries the senses of water and human. It is common in Thailand and has no famous bearer, which is either a drawback or an opening depending on how you look at it. Four syllables is a lot, but the stress pattern is regular. Nara on its own is a fine short form and reads as a name in several languages.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Quality of water
- Pronunciation: lak-sa-na-RA
- Variations: Laknara
Lalisa
Lalisa means one who is praised, and the world now knows it through Lalisa Manobal, the Thai member of the South Korean group Blackpink. For parents who like Lisa but find it dated, this is the same core sound with three extra letters and a Thai passport. American use is negligible, so the association stays with her rather than with a generation of classmates. Lisa and Lali both work as short forms.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: One who is praised
- Pronunciation: la-lee-SA
- Namesakes: Lalisa Manobal, a Thai rapper, singer, and dancer based in South Korea.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2023 at #12,867 (7 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Lalita
Lalita means playful and charming, and it carries real religious weight in Hinduism as another title for the goddess Parvati and the name of one of young Krishna’s companions. Thai families use it alongside its Sanskrit relatives. It had a small American moment in the late 1970s and has been drifting down ever since. Lali and Lita are both natural short forms, and neither sounds like an abbreviation. It also sits one letter away from Lalisa, further down this page, if you want the Blackpink association without quite committing to it.
- Origin: Sanskrit, Thai
- Meaning: Playful, charming
- Pronunciation: la-lee-TA
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2023 at #14,392 (6 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Falling in the United States, down 19% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Lamyai
Lamyai is the longan, a small brown-shelled fruit grown across northern Thailand that tastes like a gentler lychee. Fruit names are ordinary in Thai and quietly charming in English, which is the appeal of this nature-inspired name. Mor lam singer Lamyai Haithongkham made it recognizable nationwide in 2017. Lumyai is the alternate spelling, and Yai works as a nickname.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Longan
- Pronunciation: lam-YIE
- Variations: Lumyai
- Namesakes: Lamyai Haithongkham, a Thai mor lam singer who rose to fame in 2017 following the release of her single Phu Sao Khar.
Latda
Latda is the Thai and Lao word for ivy, with a secondary reading of line or streak. Ivy climbs, which is the image most parents are after, and the name has none of the fussiness the English Ivy has picked up. Ladda and Lada are the same name transcribed differently, and all three are two syllables of hard consonants, easy to say once and remember afterwards.
- Origin: Thai, Lao
- Meaning: Ivy
- Pronunciation: lat-DA
- Variations: Ladda, Lada
Lawan
Lawan means beautiful, but its best-known bearer gave it a different association: Lawan Upa-in was the first woman named a Thai National Artist in visual arts, working through the 1950s and 1960s when the field was almost entirely male. That history lends an otherwise gentle name some spine. It is two syllables and phonetically regular, la-WAN. American use faded out decades ago.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Beautiful
- Pronunciation: la-WAN
- Namesakes: Lawan Upa-in, the first female to be honored as a Thai National Artist in the field of visual arts.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. boys’ names in 2002 at #9,013 (7 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Mai
Mai turns up independently in Thai, Japanese, Vietnamese, Arabic, Estonian and Norwegian, which is why its meanings scatter so widely. The Thai reading is tomorrow, a generous thing to call someone whose whole life is still ahead of her. It had a real American run in the late 1980s and has settled into rarity since. One syllable, universally pronounceable, and it never needs a nickname.
- Origin: Thai, Japanese, Vietnamese, Arabic, Estonian, Norwegian
- Meaning: Tomorrow, plum, water, beloved
- Pronunciation: MIE
- Namesakes: Davika “Mai” Hoorne, a Thai actress and model who debuted in the TV series Ngao Kammathep in 2010.
- Popularity: #3,016 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (55 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Steady in the United States, down 12% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Malai
Malai is a garland of flowers, the kind strung for temple offerings and hung around the necks of arriving guests all over Thailand. It sits close enough to Malia and Milani that Americans hear it as familiar without quite placing it, which is a useful position for a feminine name to occupy. Two syllables, ma-LIE, and no spelling explanation required.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Garland of flowers
- Pronunciation: ma-LIE
- Popularity: #10,595 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (9 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Steady in the United States, up 9% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Mali
Mali is jasmine, the small white flower threaded into Thai garlands. It is two syllables, ma-LEE, and it sits in the same sound family as Mia and Mila without being either of them. American use is small but steady rather than fading, which is often how a name looks shortly before it moves. Malee is the alternate spelling if you want the vowel spelled out. Malai, the garland name a few entries up, is its closest relative here and describes a string of these same flowers.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Jasmine
- Pronunciation: ma-LEE
- Variations: Malee
- Namesakes: Malinee “Mali” Coates, a Thai British actress and model featured in the hit dramas Oh My Ghost (2018) and Me Always You (2021). Malee Wetprasert, a Thai actress, typecast as a grandmother in several Thai movies.
- Popularity: #3,954 among U.S. girls’ names in 2025 (37 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data. Steady in the United States, up 7% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Mayura
Mayura is the peacock, a bird with real standing in Hinduism through its links to several deities. As a name it is most common in the Indian states of Karnataka and Maharashtra, and among Hindu families in Sri Lanka and Thailand. Thai actress Mayura Sawetsila brought it to a television audience with Roop Thong in 2018. It only reached American birth records in the past few years, so this one is arriving rather than fading.
- Origin: Sanskrit, Indian
- Meaning: Peacock
- Pronunciation: ma-yoo-RA
- Variations: Mayoora
- Namesakes: Mayura Sawetsila, a Thai actress and presenter featured in the 2018 TV series Roop Thong.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2024 at #14,662 (6 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Mew
Mew is the Thai word for cat, built straight out of the sound cats make, and it is one of the most common nicknames in the country. It is one syllable, closer to MAOW than to the English mew, and cat people will not need any further argument.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Cat
- Pronunciation: MAOW
- Variations: Maew, Maow, Mao, Meuw
- Namesakes: Nittha “Mew” Jirayungyurn, a Thai actress featured in the dramas Khun Chai Pawornruj and My Husband in Law.
Mookda
Mookda means pearl, which comes with a story built in: an oyster turns an irritant into the thing everyone wants. Pearls stand for change and hard-won wisdom for exactly that reason. Actress Mookda Narinrak has carried the name through a decade of Thai drama. Mukda is the alternate spelling, and Mook works as a short form. It sits alongside Kaew (diamond), Butsarakham (yellow sapphire) and Wararat (jewel) in this list’s small collection of gemstone names. Of those four, Mookda is the easiest for an English speaker to say.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Pearl
- Pronunciation: mook-DA
- Variations: Mukda
- Namesakes: Mookda Narinrak, a Thai actress, model, and dancer known for her roles in Mussaya (2017) and Suparburuth Jom Jorn (2019).
Naiyana
Naiyana means eye, and Thai uses it poetically, nearer to the eye of the heart than to anatomy. It is unisex at home and elegant in either direction. Four syllables looks daunting until you say it, nie-ya-NA, and find it moves easily. There is no famous bearer to speak of, which leaves the name entirely free.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Eye
- Pronunciation: nie-ya-NA
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2024 at #16,950 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Steady in the United States, up 8% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Nalin
Nalin comes from the Sanskrit nalini, meaning lotus, and Thailand reads the lotus as purity because the flower comes up clean through muddy water. It is masculine in Sri Lanka and India but unisex in Thailand, which puts it on the shortlist for parents who want a gender-neutral name with real cultural footing. Thai German singer Nalin Hohler is its most visible bearer. Naleen is the alternate spelling. American use has thinned over the past decade, so the name is heading toward genuinely rare rather than away from it.
- Origin: Thai, Indian, Bengali, Chinese
- Meaning: Lotus
- Pronunciation: na-LEEN
- Variations: Naleen
- Namesakes: Nalin Hohler, a Thai singer and actress of German descent, known for Beauty Battle Thailand (2017) and The Mask Singer (2018).
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. boys’ names in 2023 at #11,825 (6 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Falling in the United States, down 38% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Noi
Noi means little, and it is a classic Thai nickname for a youngest child. It is feminine in Laos and unisex in Thailand, so it works whichever way your family leans. Actress Noi Busakorn Pornwanavej carried it into a long screen career. It is short, warm, and does not turn awkward once the little one grows up, which is more than most diminutives manage. Noy is the alternate spelling, and the vowel sits closer to NAWY than an English reader would guess.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Little
- Pronunciation: NAWY
- Variations: Noy
- Namesakes: Noi Busakorn Pornwanavej, a Thai actress, model, and producer featured in the 2000 TV drama Fon Tok Kee Moo Lai.
Pakpao
Pakpao is the Thai word for a kite, making it one of the few names on this list drawn from play rather than from flowers, jewels or virtues. The image does the work: something light, high up, and held on to.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Kite
- Pronunciation: pak-POW
Panadda
Panadda means great-grandchild, which is an unusual thing to name someone and a quietly moving one. It places a baby inside a line of people rather than describing her. Singer Panadda Ruangwut has taken it onto two of Thailand’s biggest television contests, and Nadda works as a nickname if the full four syllables feel heavy.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Great-grandchild
- Pronunciation: pa-nat-DA
- Variations: Panatda
- Namesakes: Panadda Ruangwut, a Thai singer who participated in song contests I Can See Your Voice Thailand and The Masked Singer.
Parinya
Parinya means knowledge and awareness, and Thailand gives it to boys and girls, athletes especially. Muay Thai champion Parinya Charoenphol and volleyball player Parinya Pankaew both carry it. The stress falls late, pa-reen-YAH, and Prinya is the shorter spelling if you want one less syllable to explain.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Knowledge, awareness
- Pronunciation: pa-reen-YAH
- Variations: Prinya
- Namesakes: Parinya Charoenphol, a Thai boxer, and former muay thai champion. Parinya Pankaew, a Thai female volleyball player.
Patcharin
Patcharin joins phatchara (diamond) to a syllable referring to Indra, the warrior god of Hindu tradition, landing on something like diamonds of Indra. Tennis player Patcharin Cheapchandej, who goes by Eve, won three ITF singles titles under it. Phatcharin is the alternate spelling. Rin makes an easy short form for a name that runs three syllables in English.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Diamonds of Indra
- Pronunciation: pat-cha-REEN
- Variations: Phatcharin
- Namesakes: Patcharin “Eve” Cheapchandej, a Thai tennis player who won three ITF singles titles.
Phensri
Phensri means the glory of the full moon, which is about as luminous as Thai naming gets. Singer Pensri Pomchoosri carried the shorter spelling through Thailand’s mid-century pop era, so the name has a nostalgic reading as well as a celestial one. Say it pehn-SREE. Moon names have been having a long moment abroad, and this one has gone untouched. Four spellings circulate, from Phensri to the plainer Pensi, so pick whichever reads best in your alphabet.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Glory of the full moon
- Pronunciation: pehn-SREE
- Variations: Phensi, Pensi, Pensri
- Namesakes: Pensri Pomchoosri, a prominent pop singer and actress in Thailand between the 40s and 70s.
Porntip
Porntip is built from phon (blessing) and thip (divine), and it is genuinely popular in Thailand. English-speaking countries are the problem: the first syllable reads badly in print and would follow her through school. Pornthip is the closer transcription and does not fix it. The name is worth knowing, and worth being honest about where it works.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Divine blessing
- Pronunciation: pawn-TEEP
- Variations: Pornthip
- Namesakes: Porntip Papanai, a Thai actress and model featured in Monrak Transistor (2001) and Ploy (2007).
Praew
Praew means shining, and its near neighbours gleaming and glistening are just as accurate. The pronunciation is the sticking point, PRAY-ew in one quick movement, and English speakers rarely land it first time. Thai singer Tissanamadee “Praew” Jan-a-tikun uses it publicly. Phraew and Praeo are the alternate spellings, and none of them make the vowel any easier.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Shining
- Pronunciation: PRAY-ew
- Variations: Phraew, Praeo, Phraeo
- Namesakes: Tissanamadee “Praew” Jan-a-tikun, a Thai member of The Glass Girls group.
Pranee
Pranee means living being, literally one that breathes, from a Sanskrit root. Discus thrower Pranee Kitipongpitaya represented Thailand at the 1964 Olympics under it. Disney gave the name an unexpected lift in 2021, since Pranee is Sisu’s shape-shifting older sister in Raya and the Last Dragon. Two syllables, and Nee is waiting inside as a short form.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Living being
- Pronunciation: pra-NEE
- Namesakes: Pranee Kitipongpitaya, a Thai athlete who competed in the women’s discus throw at the 1964 Olympics.
Praya
Praya is the Thai and Indonesian form of the Sanskrit Priya, meaning beloved, and Swedish Thai actress and goodwill ambassador Praya Lundberg has made it visible well outside Thailand. If two syllables feel slight, Thai lengthens it to Pranpriya or Pranpreeya, roughly beloved breath, which is one of the prettier constructions on this list. Preeya and Priya are the alternate spellings.
- Origin: Sanskrit, Thai
- Meaning: Beloved
- Pronunciation: pra-YA
- Variations: Preeya, Priya
- Namesakes: Praya Lundberg, a Swedish Thai actress, model, and the first Goodwill Ambassador from Southeast Asia.
Pueng
Pueng means bee, and in Thailand it belongs to Pumpuang “Pueng” Duangjan, one of the defining voices of luk thung. It is one syllable, PUNG, with a vowel English does not quite have. Bee names are rare in any language, which gives this one a genuinely distinct place. Phueng is the alternate spelling.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Bee
- Pronunciation: PUNG
- Variations: Phuong, Phueng
- Namesakes: Pumpuang “Pueng” Duangjan, a Thai singer, considered a symbol of Thai song culture.
Rada
Rada arrives from two directions at once. Thai reads it as delight and joy, and the Slavic element rad carries the same sense across Russia, Bulgaria and Romania. Thai actress Rada Sirimaneewattana keeps it current at home. American records have carried it, thinly, for well over a century, which makes it old without being dated. Say it ra-DAH. That double heritage is genuinely useful if your family sits across both traditions, since neither side has to treat the name as an import.
- Origin: Thai, Romanian, Russian, Bulgarian
- Meaning: Delight, joy, happy
- Pronunciation: ra-DAH
- Namesakes: Rada Sirimaneewattana, a Thai actress with supporting roles in the series Plerng Ruk Plerng Kaen (2019) and My Hero Series: Under the Bird’s Wing (2018).
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2024 at #14,878 (6 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Rising in the United States, up 24% over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Ratree
Ratree means night, and it is also the Thai name for night-blooming jasmine, a plant that saves its scent for after dark. That double reading gives the name a sweet side and a slightly wilder one. Three syllables, regular stress, nothing difficult for an English speaker. It is the quiet counterweight to all the sun and moon names on this list.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Night
- Pronunciation: ra-TREE
Rhatha
Rhatha is one of two names here whose meaning is genuinely unrecorded, which is worth saying plainly rather than inventing an etymology for. Actress Rhatha Phongam gave it international visibility with Only God Forgives in 2013. The spelling with the h is hers; Ratha is the plainer version. It has the vintage weight of Agatha and Bertha without their baggage.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Unknown
- Pronunciation: RA-ta
- Variations: Ratha
- Namesakes: Rhatha Phongam, a Thai actress, singer, and model known for her supporting role in the 2013 film, Only God Forgives.
Ruchira
Ruchira comes from the Sanskrit rucira, meaning brilliant, radiant or agreeable, and it is used from India through Bengal to Thailand. It reads feminine in Thailand and India and unisex in Sri Lanka. Rujira and Rucheera are the common alternate transcriptions. Rue is the short form, and it will land as a Euphoria reference for anyone under thirty.
- Origin: Sanskrit, Thai, Indian, Bengali, Hindi
- Meaning: Brilliant
- Pronunciation: roo-chee-RA
- Variations: Rujira, Rucheera, Rujeera
Saengduean
Saengduean puts saeng (light, ray) with duean (moon), landing on moonlight. Its best-known bearer gave it a second meaning: conservationist Saengduean Chailert founded Elephant Nature Park and has spent decades on elephant welfare in Thailand. Neither the spelling nor the pronunciation is easy, seng-DWAN, and four transcriptions are in circulation. Duean works as a short form when the full version is too much for daily life. Saeng on its own is the other option and means light. Of all the moon names here, this is the one with the most substantial person attached to it.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Moonlight
- Pronunciation: seng-DWAN
- Variations: Saengduan, Sangduan, Sangduean
- Namesakes: Saengduean Chailert, an award-winning conservationist and founder of the Elephant Nature Park in Thailand.
Saripah
Saripah is the Thai, Malay and Indonesian feminine form of Sharif, a title historically given to descendants of the Prophet Muhammad. It means eminent or virtuous, and that religious weight is the point rather than a footnote. Thai Muslim families use it widely. Sarifah and Saripa are the alternate spellings.
- Origin: Thai, Malay, Indonesian
- Meaning: Eminent, virtuous
- Pronunciation: sa-ree-PA
- Variations: Saripa, Sarifah, Sarifa
Sasithorn
Sasithorn means from the moon, and it is among the more elegant long names here. Sports shooter Sasithorn Hongprasert carries it at national level. The short forms run in two directions, gentle Sasi or blunt Thorn, so the name can follow whichever child you end up with. Say it sa-see-TAWN.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: From the moon
- Pronunciation: sa-see-TAWN
- Namesakes: Sasithorn Hongprasert, a Thai professional sports shooter.
Savitree
Savitree comes from Savitr, the Hindu sun deity, and in the Mahabharata it belongs to a woman who argues the god of death out of taking her husband. That is a great deal of story behind three syllables. It is used across India, Thailand and among Hindi-speaking families, with Sawitri and Savitri as alternate spellings. Singer Savitree Suttichanond brought it to Thai television through Academy Fantasia. Say it sa-wee-TREE, with the stress at the end. It is the sun counterpart to Sasithorn and Phensri, both of which take their imagery from the moon.
- Origin: Indian, Hindi, Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Relating to the sun
- Pronunciation: sa-wee-TREE
- Variations: Savirtri, Sawitri, Sawitree
- Namesakes: Savitree Suttichanond, a Thai singer known for competing in the 5th season of the reality TV show True Vision’s Academy Fantasia.
Sawika
Sawika means follower or disciple, and it is more interesting than it first sounds, since the sense is closer to one who listens well. Actress Sawika Chaiyadet has carried it since her teens. Savika is the alternate spelling. Three syllables, regular stress, sa-wee-KA, and no part of it is hard for an English speaker.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Follower
- Pronunciation: sa-wee-KA
- Variations: Savika
- Namesakes: Sawika Chaiyadet, a Thai actress and singer who rose to frame in her teenage years after starring in the action-adventure film Angkor 2.
Sirikit
Sirikit is a royal name in the most literal sense, belonging to Queen Sirikit, consort of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and one of the most recognized women in modern Thai history. It joins si-ri (fortune, grace) to a shortened form of the Kitiyakara family name. That makes it a specific tribute rather than a general-purpose choice, which is worth weighing before you commit. Say it see-ree-KEET. Siriporn, further down, shares the same first element and carries none of the royal freight. If you want the sound without the throne, that is the safer route.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Fortune, grace, luck
- Pronunciation: see-ree-KEET
- Namesakes: Sirikit Kitiyakara, better known as Queen Sirikit, the queen consort of King Bhumibol Adulyadej and now Thailand’s queen mother.
Siriporn
Siriporn combines the same si-ri (glory, fortune) found in Sirikit with phon (blessing), so it reads as a blessing of glory. Mor lam and luk thung singer Siriporn Ampaipong is its best-known bearer, and the name is common enough in Thailand to pass unremarked there. The second syllable is the obstacle for English readers, the same one that complicates Porntip. See-ree-PAWN is the Thai sound, whatever the spelling suggests.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Blessing of glory
- Pronunciation: see-ree-PAWN
- Namesakes: Siriporn Ampaipong, a mor lam and luk thung singer from Thailand.
Som
Som is the Thai word for orange, and like most one-syllable Thai names it works as a nickname at home rather than a legal one. Actress and singer Marie “Som” Eugenie Le Lay took it into a French Thai career after winning a talent contest in 2008. Outside Thailand nothing stops it being a given name, and the simplicity is the whole appeal. It also pairs cleanly with almost any longer middle name.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Orange (fruit)
- Pronunciation: SOM
- Namesakes: Marie “Som” Eugenie Le Lay, a Thai French singer and actress whose career took off after winning the LG Starz Talent contest in 2008.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. boys’ names in 2021 at #13,811 (5 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since. Steady in the United States, unchanged over the last 10 years of births against the 10 years before them.
Songkran
Songkran is the Thai New Year, held in April, and the word itself means movement, describing the sun crossing from one zodiac sign into the next. That makes it the most seasonal name on this list, since an April baby would carry the festival with her for life. It is unisex and unfamiliar abroad, so expect to explain it once and then never again. Two syllables, both straightforward.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Movement
- Pronunciation: song-KRAN
Sukhon
Sukhon means fragrance, and it is one of a handful of names here that come from Pali rather than Sanskrit, the liturgical language of Theravada Buddhism. It manages to be soft without turning sugary, which is a hard balance for a name built on the idea of sweetness. Say it soo-KON, with the weight on the second syllable.
- Origin: Thai, Pali
- Meaning: Fragrance, sweet-smelling
- Pronunciation: soo-KON
Suthida
Suthida means good daughter, and it belongs to the current Queen of Thailand, Suthida Bajrasudhabimalalakshana, who worked as a flight attendant before she married King Vajiralongkorn. That is an unusually recent royal association for a name, and it has kept Suthida highly visible at home. It runs four syllables in English and not one of them is difficult. Thida works as a short form. Be aware that inside Thailand the name now reads as a direct royal reference, which may be more weight than you want.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Good daughter
- Pronunciation: soo-tee-DAH
- Namesakes: Suthida Bajrasudhabimalalakshana, the Queen of Thailand and fourth wife of King Vajiralongkorn.
Suwanni
Suwanni comes from the Thai suwan (gold), itself from the Sanskrit suvarna. Its literary association is with novelist Suwannee Sukhontha, who won the SEATO Literature Award in 1971. Gold names are common across Southeast Asia and this is one of the more melodic. Suwannee and Suvanni are the alternate spellings, and Wanni works as a nickname.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Gold
- Pronunciation: soo-wan-NEE
- Variations: Suwannee, Suvanni, Suvannee
- Namesakes: Suwannee Sukhontha, a Thai writer and novelist.
Taeng
Taeng is the Thai word for melon, which is either charming or too casual depending on your taste in nicknames. It also names the Taeng River in the north, so there is a geographic reading if the fruit does not appeal.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Melon
- Pronunciation: TENG
Thatsani
Thatsani means beautiful or good-looking, and it holds the record on this list for spelling variants, with more than a dozen accepted transcriptions. That is a feature of how Thai consonants map onto Latin letters, not indecision on anyone’s part. Track cyclist Thatsani Wichana rode under it at the UCI Road World Championships in 2007 and 2009. Pick one spelling, put it on the birth certificate, and expect to be asked about the others. Thatsanee and Tasanee are the two you will meet most often. Say it tat-sa-NEE regardless of which letters you land on.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Beautiful, good-looking
- Pronunciation: tat-sa-NEE
- Variations: Thatsanee, Tatsani, Tatsanee, Thassani, Thassanee, Tassani, Tassanee, Thasani, Thasanee, Tasani, Tasanee, Thadsani, Thadsanee, Tadsani, Tadsanee
- Namesakes: Thatsani Wichana, a Thai track and road cyclist who competed in the 2007 and 2009 UCI Road World Championships.
Tontawan
Tontawan means early sun, making it the sunrise counterpart to all the moon names on this list. Model and actress Tontawan Tantivejakul carried it to a young international audience as Gorya in F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers. It runs three syllables in English, tun-tah-WAHN, and it is more rhythmic than it looks written down. Tawan is the natural short form. Its opposite number on this list is Ratree, meaning night, if you are naming twins and enjoy that sort of symmetry. Usa, meaning dawn, sits somewhere in between.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Early sun
- Pronunciation: tun-tah-WAHN
- Namesakes: Tontawan Tantivejakul, a Thai model and actress best known for her role as Gorya in the drama F4 Thailand: Boys Over Flowers.
Ubon
Ubon is the Thai word for lotus, and it also names Ubon Ratchathani, a province and city in the northeast whose name means royal lotus city. The flower carries the same Buddhist reading it does everywhere in Thailand, purity rising out of muddy water. The stress falls on the first syllable here, OO-bon, which is unusual for this list and makes it easy for English speakers. A natural pick for a family with roots in that part of the country. Nalin and Bongkoj are the other two lotus names here if the sound of this one does not land.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Lotus
- Pronunciation: OO-bon
Urassaya
Urassaya means daughter, plainly, which is either too literal or exactly right depending on your taste. Actress Urassaya Sperbund is one of the most recognized names in Thai television and goes by Yaya, which is the standard nickname for anyone else carrying it too. Four syllables makes it among the longer picks here. Adoptive families sometimes choose it for exactly what the meaning states outright.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Daughter
- Pronunciation: uras-say-AH
- Namesakes: Urassaya Sperbund, a Thai actress and model known for her roles in Duang Jai Akkanee (2010) and The Crown Princess (2018).
Usa
Usa means dawn, from the same root as the Sanskrit Ushas. It is three letters and two syllables, oo-SAH, in a list full of four-syllable names, which makes it one of the easiest entries to hand to an English speaker. The obvious complication is that it is spelled like USA, which a Thai American family may find charming or tiresome. Either way, nobody will misspell it.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Dawn
- Pronunciation: oo-SAH
Waen
Waen means ring or circle, a long-standing Thai nickname that singer Thitima “Waen” Suttasunthorn carried onto the charts. The imagery is unusually apt for a name, since a circle has neither beginning nor end.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Circle, ring
- Pronunciation: WEHN
- Namesakes: Thitima “Waen” Suttasunthorn, best known for her single Fah Yang Mee Fon, which sold over 900,000 tapes.
Wanwisa
Wanwisa comes from wanwisakhabucha, the Thai name for Visakha Puja, the holiday marking the Buddha’s birth, enlightenment and death on a single day. It is the most explicitly religious name on this list. That gives it real meaning for a Buddhist family and makes it an odd fit for anyone else. Wanvisa is the alternate spelling, and Wisa works as a short form.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Visakha Puja
- Pronunciation: wan-wee-SAH
- Variations: Wanvisa, Vanvisa, Vanwisa
Wararat
Wararat joins wara (excellent, distinguished) to rat (jewel), so the name says outright that the child is a fine gem. Thai naming does this often, and Wararat, or Worarat, is one of the more direct examples. Three syllables, regular stress, wa-ra-RAT, and the final syllable is not a short form anyone should use in English.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Excellent jewel
- Pronunciation: wa-ra-RAT
- Variations: Worarat
Watthana
Watthana means development or growth, and it also names one of Bangkok’s fifty districts. Place names have been fashionable for a decade, so a Bangkok district is no stranger a choice than Dakota or Brooklyn. It is unisex in Thailand. Hana sits inside it as a ready-made nickname that needs no explanation anywhere.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Development
- Pronunciation: wat-ta-NA
Woranuch
Woranuch combines wara (excellent, distinguished) with anuch (younger sister), which makes it an unusually specific thing to name a second daughter. Soap opera actress Woranuch Bhirombhakdi, sometimes spelled Woranut, is its best-known bearer. Three syllables, war-ah-NOOCH, ending on a sound English uses rarely.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Excellent sister, good girl
- Pronunciation: war-ah-NOOCH
- Variations: Woranut
- Namesakes: Woranuch Bhirombhakdi, a Thai soap opera actress featured in the Thai TV series Pob Pee Fa.
Yanin
Yanin comes from the Sanskrit jnanin, meaning one who knows, and it is the most intellectual name on this list without being heavy about it. Its best-known bearer works against type: Yanin “Jeeja” Vismitananda is a martial artist who built a career in Muay Thai action films. Two syllables, ya-NEEN, and the stress falls where English expects it. American use faded out over a decade ago. Yanin is Sanskrit at root and Thai in practice, which is the standard shape of a Thai formal name.
- Origin: Thai, Sanskrit
- Meaning: Wise, intelligent
- Pronunciation: ya-NEEN
- Namesakes: Yanin “Jeeja” Vismitananda, a Thai actress and martial artist specializing in Muay Thai.
- Popularity: Last listed among U.S. girls’ names in 2012 at #14,911 (7 births), per U.S. Social Security Administration data, and below the five-births-a-year cutoff since.
Yihwa
Yihwa sits at a crossroads of Thai, Chinese and Korean naming, which is why its meanings range from soul and spirit to pear blossoms. In Thai it is feminine and reads as heart or soul, ultimately from a Sanskrit or Pali root. Eva Yihwa Chen co-founded the security firm Trend Micro, a rare sighting of this name in a boardroom rather than a drama. It can also be shortened from Wanyihwa, spirit of yesterday. Yiwha and Yiwah are the alternate spellings. The three-culture overlap is the real draw for a family with more than one heritage to honor.
- Origin: Thai, Chinese, Korean
- Meaning: Soul, spirit, life, pear blossoms
- Pronunciation: yee-WAH
- Variations: Yiwha, Yiwah
- Namesakes: Eva Yihwa Chen, a Thai businessperson and co-founder of Trend Micro, one of the world’s largest security firms.
Yingluck
Yingluck is inseparable from Yingluck Shinawatra, who became Thailand’s first female prime minister in 2011. That association is the name, for better and worse: it is unavoidably political inside Thailand and entirely neutral outside it. Its meaning is not reliably recorded, which is rarer than you would expect for a Thai name. Ying works as a short form.
- Origin: Thai
- Meaning: Unknown
- Pronunciation: ying-LAK
- Namesakes: Yingluck Shinawatra, the first female prime minister of Thailand.
