Which is your favorite name?

An incredible number of babies were named after these 12 celebrities

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Ever notice how some baby names seem to suddenly pop up everywhere? Celebrities, hit songs, and famous artists have a way of turning not-so-common names into household favorites. Whether it’s a chart-topping single or a star-studded baby announcement, pop culture leaves its mark on what we name our kids. Take a look at 12 of these names that got a boost from the spotlight.

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The King of Rock 'n' Roll himself, Elvis Presley, has been the inspiration for the naming of countless babies. His appearance on "The Ed Sullivan Show," one of America's most popular television programs of the mid-20th century, spawned an uptick in babies named in his honor. The same goes for his untimely passing in the 1970s.

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The name Sienna has gained popularity in baby name registrations since 2005. That year marked a turning point after Sienna Miller's breakout roles in Alfie and Layer Cake.

Her rising fame helped push the name into the spotlight, leading to a noticeable increase in its use among new parents.

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When Titanic hit theaters in 1997, it became a cultural phenomenon. It was the highest-grossing film ever at the time, and held that record for many years. Titanic catapulted Leonardo DiCaprio to international fame, cementing his status as a heartthrob and launching a successful acting career.

The movie’s impact went beyond the box office: it even influenced baby names, generating a huge spike in popularity for the name Leonardo.

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The Disney brand has had an unquestionable influence on baby name trends. No other company has shaped naming choices quite like Walt Disney Entertainment.

Whoever had a child in the past decade has likely encountered the lasting impact of Frozen. The film sparked everything from Halloween costumes and merchandise to endless rounds of karaoke and, of course, a surge in babies named after Elsa, the Ice Queen herself.

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There's arguably no other band that's had a cultural impact as widespread and as lasting as The Beatles. The surge of Beatlemania during the 60s guaranteed the band's worldwide popularity, and many a baby was named after Liverpool's best and their songs.

The Lennon-McCartney-penned song, "Hey Jude," helped generate a big spike in popularity for the name Jude around the time when the song was released.

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Zendaya first gained attention in 2010 with her role on the Disney show Shake It Up, and her star has only risen ever since. She’s taken on major roles in projects like Euphoria, the Dune franchise, and Challengers, becoming one of the most recognizable household names in entertainment.

Before her rise to fame, the name "Zendaya" was so rare it didn’t even appear in the Social Security dataset. But with each new hit, the name has steadily grown in popularity, inspired by the actress’s continued success.

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The name "Elon" has seen a notable rise in popularity since 2013. That year marked a turning point when Tesla’s stock began skyrocketing in value.

As the company (and its CEO, Elon Musk) continued to make headlines, the name gained more attention, leading to a steady increase in its use.

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They were certainly not as popular as the Beatles, and some might consider them a one-hit wonder, but the American rock band The Knack also left their mark on the lists of popular baby names.
The song that spearheaded the band's rise to fame, "My Sharona" from 1980, generated a spike in the register of births of baby girls named, you guessed it, Sharona.

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Forrest Gump (1994) had such a noticeable cultural impact that it sparked a one-year surge in babies named Forrest. The film’s widespread popularity left its mark on parents, many of whom were inspired by the character’s virtues of honesty and kindness.

Some parents likely chose the name to reflect the same goodness embodied by Tom Hanks' iconic role, while others simply couldn’t shake the name out of their minds after seeing the film.

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The 2005 song "Hey There Delilah" is a ballad that says the name Delilah a large number of times. It's the signature song of the American pop band Plain White T's.

This song was very popular in its day, and it left a significant cultural fingerprint, producing a massive spike in kids named Delilah.

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Trinity brought something fresh to the action movie genre: a strong, independent female character in a space often dominated by men. Her role in The Matrix broke new ground, offering audiences a different kind of action hero.

The film’s impact extended beyond the screen, influencing baby names. In 1998, the year before The Matrix was released, 557 babies were given the name Trinity. By 2004, that number had jumped to 5,729.

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Another Disney movie_,_ The Little Mermaid, tells the story of a mermaid girl who sacrifices her voice for legs. Loosely based on a darker version of the story by Hans Christian Andersen, the film skyrocketed the name Ariel into a huge hit. Over 6,000 babies were given the name shortly after the movie's debut.

We all know who Henry Ford was, but what about Volvo?

What is a Mitsubishi? Discover the origin behind 10 iconic cars’ names

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Car companies are named after a myriad of things. Starting a new company usually requires individuals with a healthy dose of optimism and self-confidence, which is why it should come as no surprise that many car brands are named after their founders, who were confident people themselves. Other companies are named after ideas, concepts, places, and more. Take a look at the following 10 famous brands and their stories!

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"Oh Lord, won’t you buy me a Mercedes-Benz," sang Janis Joplin, a testament to the iconic nature of this brand. Most people know that the name is connected to the founder, Karl Benz, and they’re not entirely wrong.

The company we know today started as Benz & Cie., founded by Karl Benz, and Daimler-Motoren-Gesellschaft (DMG). The name Mercedes comes from Mercedes Jellinek, the daughter of Emil Jellinek, who worked with DMG and was an avid racing enthusiast.

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Not many people know that one of the most iconic American car brands was named after a French explorer. Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac founded the city of Detroit, Michigan.

The brand began in 1902 when Henry Ford’s financial backers renamed the Henry Ford Company to the Cadillac Automobile Company. Cadillac soon became synonymous with luxury and reliability, establishing itself as one of America’s premier luxury car brands.

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The German brand Volkswagen was founded in 1937. Its name translates to "the people’s car," with Volks meaning "people" and wagen meaning "car," reflecting the idea of an affordable vehicle for the masses.

Today, Volkswagen owns several other brands, including Bentley, Bugatti, and Lamborghini, making it one of the largest car manufacturers in the world.

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Another brand named, at least partially, after a person is Toyota. It comes from the family name of its founder, Sakichi Toyoda. When the company first produced vehicles, it even used a Toyoda emblem. However, in 1936, the name was changed from Toyoda to Toyota.

The name "Toyota" was chosen partly because the "ta" sound is a voiceless consonant in Japanese, which is considered clearer and crisper than the voiced consonant in "Toyoda." Additionally, the name "Toyota" requires eight strokes to write in Japanese katakana, a number considered lucky in Japanese culture.

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What better name for an electric car company than that of a genius inventor closely associated with electricity? Yes, the name Tesla comes from Serbian inventor Nikola Tesla, who was famous for his contributions to the fields of electricity and magnetism.

Tesla Motors was founded by Martin Eberhard and Marc Tarpenning in 2003. Both were avid fans of Nikola Tesla and decided to name their company after the scientist. In February 2004, Elon Musk made a $6.5 million investment in the company, and the rest is history.

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What do you do if your name’s already taken? Audi’s founder, August Horch, didn’t want to name the company after his surname because it was already being used in A. Horch & Cie. Motorwagen Werke.

In German, Horch means "listen," so August Horch decided to use the Latin translation of his surname instead: Audi. In the end, it worked out for the better, as the name sounds good.

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Another very famous German brand is BMW, which stands for the more complex name Bayerische Motoren Werke, which translates to "Bavarian Motor Works." The company’s roots lie in aircraft engine manufacturing, originally operating under the name Bayerische Flugzeug-Werke, or "Bavarian Aircraft Works."

In 1917, the company changed its name to Bayerische Motoren Werke, which was later shortened to the famous BMW initialism we know today.

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FIAT is an acronym for Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino, which translates to "Factory Italy Automotive Turin." A slightly more interpretive but meaningful translation is "Italian Automobiles Factory of Turin."

In 1900, the first FIAT factory was indeed opened in Turin, a city in northern Italy known as a center of business and culture, and historically, a political capital. Even today, Turin remains a hub for the production of the latest FIAT models.

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This is a curious case. Mitsubishi is not the name of a founder, a city, an acronym, or any of those things. Instead, the brand name refers to the company’s three-diamond logo, which has ties to the family crest. "Mitsu" (三) means "three," and "hishi" (菱) means "water chestnut," a term the Japanese use to describe a diamond shape—like the ones that make up the logo. Combined, the two words are pronounced Mitsubishi.

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The Swedish brand known for the quality and safety of its vehicles is named after the Latin first-person conjugation of the verb volvere, which directly translates to "I roll."

Before manufacturing cars, Volvo produced iron ball bearings (yes, those roll too). These early iron products also influenced the logo we know today for their automotive company, featuring the ancient chemical symbol for iron (a circle with an arrow), which reflects strength and durability.