Tessa

Tessa began as a Dutch nickname for Theresa, a name with contested Greek roots that may mean "to harvest" or point to a native of the island of Therasia. Thomas Hardy wedged it permanently into English literature with Tess of the d'Urbervilles in 1891, a novel that gave the short form its own gravity and grief. American parents embraced it as a standalone in the 1980s, and it has held near the 300 mark for years without ever feeling faddish. Two syllables that close firmly, TESS-ah. Clean, a little windswept, slightly Dutch in its efficiency; Tessa is confident without needing volume.