3 letter names!

Aya, barely more than a breath, is an international favorite, with origins in several languages and cultures. Popular throughout Europe, It debuted on the US Top 1000 in 2012.

One of the most usable of the pleasant, newly adopted nature/water names (like Lake and Ocean), especially in middle position. It's gentle, slightly whimsical, but grounded by its similarity to May or Rae.

As Bas, it's a popular name in The Netherlands, but Baz, as in director Luhrmann, has potential for independent life too.

Curiously, Australian-born Moulin Rouge director Luhrmann was born neither Sebastian nor Basil, but had the name Mark Anthony on his birth certificate; his nickname arose from his supposed resemblance to a British TV fox puppet named Basil Brush.

Bea is a former old lady name that's cute again as a short form -- and is now beginning to stand on its own. Bee is a variation that, like Bea, can work as a diminutive for any name that starts with the letter B, or in the middle. Bea actually stood alone on the popularity lists for four years at the beginning of the twentieth century--and it could happen again.

We've seen Beatrice and Beatrix climb in popularity, along with traditional nickname Bea. And now there's Bee, giving it a buzzy nature world spin, plus a tie to popular late night TV''s Samantha Bee, not to mention Aunt Bee on the old The Andy Griffith Show TV show. Bee can theoretically be short for any girl names starting with B.

Ben, the diminutive of Benjamin or Benedict, can easily stand on its own as a simple, strong, nice-guy choice, though it's somewhat attenuated. Ben is this generation's Bob or Bill.

Kids love Bob the Builder, but do they want to be Bob the Builder? Bob and Bobby have been out of style since the 1960s, but as vintage nickname-names -- Fred, Archie -- come back into vogue, Bob may tag along. Charlie Sheen used it for one of his twin sons.

If Caroline is too classic and Callie too cutesy, Cal might work as a cool alternative. Well established and currently in the Top 1000 for boys, it has potential as a gender neutral option too.

Cameron is still more popular as a boy's name than a girls and this simple, snappy short form works well for either sex.

A Pam for the modern age, improved by a harder edge and a tad less prissiness.

The lead character of the Captain America movies, played by Chris Evans, is occasionally called Cap, short for "captain," but even he has a real name. (Steve Rogers, ICYC)

May be the most modern, stylish Catherine nickname: more unusual than Kate or Cate, with an animal and word name edge. Cat Power is a trendy folksinger.

Cay is a rare respelling of the retro nickname Kay but one that may gain ground as a name that's both simple and unique. Like Kay, it can be a diminutive for any of the hundreds of Catherine variations that start with a C or of more modern names such as Caylee or Cadence. Or it can stand on its own as a sleek contemporary nickname-name.

Often stands alone in Israel, but rarely here.

The appealingly energetic Dax, with its trendy X-ending, re-entered the Top 1000 in 2007. Its somewhat sci-fi vibe emanates from his appearance as a fictional being in the Star Trek universe, seen on the TV show "Star Trek: Deep Space Nine." The Power Rangers character Dax Lo was the Blue Ranger.

This name has recently come on the radar via rising actor Dev Patel, who made his mark in Slumdog Millionaire and then in Lion and is also the name of the lead character played by Aziz Ansari in his sitcom Master of None. It could catch on here, at a time when parents are importing other three-letter names like Liv.