More new parents are reaching for the stars, in all senses of the term, in choosing names for their babies, according to a leading baby blog: Welcome to the world, Baby Rey, Baby Kylo and ... Baby Jedi?
Babycenter.com, a leading new-mom blog, reported Wednesday that this year’s hot baby-name trends are already emerging, and Star Wars names are having a moment with the diapered set.
True, the usual top ten names — your Emmas and Olivias, your Liams and Noahs — are holding steady for the umpteenth year. But Kylo and Rey, Han and Jedi, Rogue and Rebel are coming on strong while remaining farther back in the pack.
"With the seventh film of the Star Wars franchise currently in theaters – and earning very strong reviews – it seems parents have been 'awakened' to the baby name potential lurking out there in the galaxy," the site chirped. "And two names in particular are up in galactic proportions."
Kylo zoomed up the boys’ list by 67% since 2015, according to the blog's analysis. For girls, the name Rey rocketed up more than 11,000 spots in the rankings, or 82% since 2015.
"What better namesake for a little girl than a strong, kind, brave female character who doesn’t back down from a challenge (and who knows her way around the Millennium Falcon, too)?," the blog said.
Linda Murray, BabyCenter's global editor-in-chief, said she was surprised by interest in Kylo, but maybe it's because he has "awesome" 'rents in Han and Leia.
“The character Kylo Ren is such a negative force, but some parents may be attracted to the power and the darkness in this name," she said. "If you’re edgy and a bit of an outlaw, you might gravitate toward a name like this."
Fierce Jedi warrior Rey, by contrast, is easier to understand as an attractive name, she said.
"If you’re looking for a strong girl’s name that embodies power but still sounds beautiful, you can’t do much better than Rey,” she said.
But Leia, a longtime favorite, is still the choice for more parents, ranked No. 211 now (more than 2,000 spots higher than Rey) and up 64% over the past 10 years.
Luke, Finn, and Poe all seem to be unaffected by the movie buzz, but Lucas, the last name of Star Wars maestro George Lucas, has been on a steady climb for 20 years and is ranked #5 so far this year, the blog reported.
Han, as in heroic Han Solo, is pretty close to a common German name for a boy, Hans, and Rebel is the stage name of a popular Australian comic actress, Rebel Wilson. But some Star Wars names are ... well, more unconventional.
"Some parents seem to be looking for names in the Star Wars spirit but with a unique flair: We even spotted Jedi and Rogue on the move," Babycenter.org said.
So far, however, no one is naming their kid after BB-8.
