Game of Thrones baby names still proving popular

By Lizo Mzimba For BBC News

21 September 2018

Game of Thrones continues to be a popular source of parental inspiration, according to the latest list of the most popular baby names in England and Wales. A record 76 baby girls were called Khaleesi in 2017, the title enjoyed by Emilia Clarke's dragon-raising would-be queen in the award-winning fantasy TV and book series. Three more children were called Daenarys, the real name of the show's Mother of Dragons. And more girls than ever before received the name Sansa, another significant figure on the show. But if baby-naming is a reliable indicator, Game of Thrones' most popular character appears to be Arya, with 343 newborns given the same name as Maisie Williams' sword-wielding Stark. That's a big increase on 302, the number of Aryas named in 2016. Eleven baby boys, the same number as in 2016, ended up being called Tyrion, almost certainly in tribute to Peter Dinklage's Tyrion Lannister - perhaps the show's most intelligent character.

Animated movie Moana was released at the end of 2016, explaining why seven babies ended up receiving that particular name in 2017 - seven more than the previous year. The Star Wars universe has also continued to wield its influence on name choices. It's likely the death of Carrie Fisher in December 2016 was a contributing factor to the big increase (to 149) in girls being called Leia. Indeed, more children than ever before have been given names from a galaxy far, far away. Twenty-one were called Rey and 70 were called Kylo, almost certainly after the characters played by Daisy Ridley and Adam Driver in recent Star Wars instalments.

Three girls were given the name - but hopefully not the personality characteristics - of Harley-Quinn in 2017. The DC Comics villain and Joker's girlfriend was memorably played by Margot Robbie in the film Suicide Squad. In a similar vein, the success of the TV series Lucifer, in which the Devil leaves Hell and travels to Los Angeles, seems to have resulted in 11 boys being given the name of the show. It began in 2016, the year the name Lucifer entered the list for the first time. Four babies were given the name that year, a figure that increased by seven in 2017.

Reality TV is also getting in on the act. Before Made in Chelsea, the name Binky had never featured on the list. That all changed in 2014, and the number of Binkys has steadily increased with 10 newborns getting the name last year. In case you were wondering, Binky Felstead's real name is Alexandra. Choosing the right name for a newborn can be a tricky business. Luckily the world of TV and film is overflowing with unusual suggestions, and it's somewhere more and more parents are going to for inspiration.

[I do find myself cringing a bit when I hear what proud parents have named their new-born’s – names like Jack or Alex or even Arya are perfectly acceptable, but would you honestly name your child Binky or…… Lucifer? My advice to parents who do so would be to teach their children to fight – because they’re going to get bullied. A lot. Oh, and someone I work with knew someone who named their boy Huckleberry….. I wonder what they’ll get called in school. I’m guessing it won’t be Huck.]