Paulina

Feminine derivative of the Roman family name Paulinus, rooted in Paulus, meaning small or humble. It spread widely across Slavic, Romance, and Germanic traditions. The American record shows it in 1880, though it climbed highest over a century later.

The name reads as polished and international without requiring an explanation at roll call. It sidesteps the midcentury weight of Paula by adding a lilt at the finish. With the average bearer currently twenty-four years old, it belongs firmly to the early-2000s dorm room era rather than nineteenth-century court portraiture. It sounds like someone who keeps a passport valid at all times just in case.