Baby name trend we can't shake even after three decades
Naming your child after a character isn’t anything new, but millennials are keeping their media alive – quite literally – by looking to the prime TV shows and movies of their era to name their children.
BabyCentre has found the names of some of the most popular characters are reflected in baby naming trends this year.
Friends' popularity has not died down despite being over three decades on. NBCUniversal via Getty
Since Friends was uploaded to YouTube last year, the name Monica has risen 122 spots to be ranked number 931 in the most popular baby names, while Ross is up 756 spots to 1,930.
High School Musical fans are celebrating its 20th anniversary this year by carrying on its legacy, with the name Gabriella going up one spot to number 48, and Troy 38 spots to number 500.
Grey’s Anatomy celebrated 20 years on air last year, and fans have consistently been paying tribute to the show with their baby names. Derek has risen 26 spots to become the 530th most popular boy name, while Miranda is up 161 spots to number 952, and Arizona up 584 spots to number 1,357.
Some members of the nine.com.au team were also inspired by pop culture when it came to naming their children.
Natalie, our resident royal reporter, named her daughter Camille after being inspired by the ‘Bond Girl’ in the 2008 James Bond film Quantum of Solace.
“While the character wasn’t the reason for us agreeing to the name, I was making a list of baby names for boys and girls (the sex was not known) that I liked, looking to royals, real people, book characters, film and television characters and musicians,” she said.
“I had always loved French-Italian sounding names, so Camille was the perfect choice. Thankfully it was agreed upon by both of us. Her middle name – Nila – was taken from a childhood book I loved that I had always wanted to include in my future baby’s name.”
nine.com.au royal reporter Natalie Oliveri was inspired by James Bond for her baby name, Supplied
nine.com.au’s Travel editor Kristine was subconsciously inspired by the show Charmed.
“Charmed was a huge part of my teen years, I watched the show religiously and Piper was my favourite character,” she said.
“She became the matriarch of the family, took on the responsibility of her younger sisters, loved fiercely, and was determined and head strong. All traits I admired and hoped to embody as the ‘oldest sibling’ in my family as well
“So of course, I subconsciously fell in love with the name Piper long before I was needing to come up with a list of baby girl names. And yet, even when I first started thinking about what I might one day name my child, it wasn’t a name that immediately popped into my head.
Kristine was subconsciously inspired by the show Charmed. Supplied/Kristine Tarbert
“When I was lucky enough to fall pregnant with my daughter many names were thrown into the mix. I didn’t exactly name my daughter after Charmed’s Piper, but it remains a name and show that will always be important to me. Even more so now.”
The top 10 girl names have seen a bit of a shakeup this year, with some newcomers in the mix. They include:
- Olivia
- Amelia
- Eliana
- Sophia
- Charlotte
- Isabella
- Emma
- Aurora
- Ellie
- Evelyn
The top 10 boys names remain rather similar, though the last two have pushed their way in to the top spots.
They include:
- Noah
- Liam
- Oliver
- Elijah
- Mateo
- Levi
- Lucas
- Ezra
- Elias
- Leo
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