Modern girl names, simple and sleek yet rare and distinctive, provide a refreshing counterpoint to the elaborately feminine vintage names so popular for girls in recent years .

These lovely modern names for girls are standouts among the kree8tiv spellings and strange inventions that also rank among contemporary names.

Some of the girls’ names here do have deep history — Echo, Gaia, and Ione all have mythological roots, for instance —  but others are newly-minted. Think of them as classics of the future.

If you’re looking for a name for your baby girl that’s short, sweet, modern, and unique, consider these rare names for girls, all so unusual they’re below the US Top 1000 Baby Names.

1. Aja

2. Ara

3. Aris

4. Asa

5. Bree

6. Bryn

7. Caia

8. Cleo

9. Coco

10. Dara

11. Dixie

12. Drew

13. Echo

14. Gaia

15. Greer

16. Grey

17. Iman

18. Ina

19. Ione

20. Jude

21. Juno

22. Lacy

23. Leni

24. Love

25. Lula

26. Lux

27. Marin

28. Neve

29. Pia

30. Rey

31. Romy

32. Roxy

33. Shay

34. Shea

35. Tia

36. Una

37. Vida

38. Vivi

39. Zen

40. Zia