Traveling Lite Baby Names

In its original form, Shiloh is a soft unisex name, with connections to both the Bible and American history. While it is often associated with Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt's daughter, born in 2006, Shiloh ranks in the US Top 500 for girls and boys.

Shula is a short form often used on its own in Israel. Sula is another, related, option. As an Arabic name, it has a bright, fiery meaning.

Arabic form of Aaron, featured in the tales of The Thousand and One Nights. The name Harun also appears several times in the Quran.

Also seen as a surname.

Jakub is an authentic Polish variation of the megapopular Jacob, but in the US it will feel like a kree8tiv spelling. Kuba is the cute Polish short form.

The name of several minor Biblical characters seems streamlined and modern.

One of the most modern-sounding Old Testament names, Imri is short and sweet enough to travel easily around the world. It is the name of two minor biblical figures, and also used by modern Hebrew speakers.

Mavi is used for both boys and girls in its native Turkey, but is a new gender-neutral name in the US.

Roni may sound like the Doowop-era Ronnie or Ronni, often named for her dad Ron, but it's actually a freestanding Hebrew name with an uplifting meaning.

Intriguing twist on several familiar names, though many people will mistake this for Elsa, Eliza, and so on.

Adds some zest to Rosa.

Botanical Hebrew choice that leads to the sweet vintage nickname Nettie.

Lova, a Louise relative virtually unknown in the US, is one of the top girl names in Sweden.

Sprightly name popular in Israel with beachy meaning and international flex.

A Top 10 name in Turkey, seen again in the Top 100 in the double-barreled combination Kerem Ali.

Esha is a lovely Indian name that would work well outside the Indian sub-continent, perhaps as a substitute to the more unisex Asher.

A short and sweet Hindi name which has been relatively popular in the UK – peaking at #280 there in 2003.

Toma is one of the handful of names that has different versions for boys and girls. For boys, it's the Romanian and Croatian short form of Thomas.