About Celebrity Baby Names

Be Inspired by Celebrity Baby Names

Why should you care about celebrity baby names? Just as celebrities influence our choices in fashion, music, and movies, they also lend a “cool” factor to certain baby names.

For many prospective parents, choosing a baby name is a difficult process. They want to pick a name that’s unique, distinctive, and memorable. Follow these five tips to pick a celebrity-inspired name for your new bundle of joy.

Travel the Globe

Even if you’ve never traveled further than the corner grocery store, giving your baby a foreign name can add a worldly allure to his/her personality. Take your cue from celebrity baby names and choose a name that reflects your own cultural heritage or one that is influenced by a place you’d like to visit one day.

Kelly Ripa recently named her son Joaquin, a Spanish-inspired name which means “God will establish.” Jill Hennessy, who happens to be a twin, named her newborn son Marco, a name with both Italian and Spanish origins. Mira Sorvino chose the Hebrew name Mattea for her daughter. For a slightly more innovative approach, Catherine Zeta-Jones named her daughter Carys—the Welsh word for “love.”

Visit the Library

If you’re an avid reader, consider following the celebrity-inspired trend of naming your baby after a favorite author, book, or literary character. However, this strategy works best if the name you choose is inspired by a well-known classic.

Brendan Fraser’s son is named Holden after the beloved hero of The Catcher in the Rye. Natalie Maine’s son is named Beckett Finn in honor of the Irish playwright Samuel Beckett. Christopher Meloni named his son Dante and actress Demi Moore is rumored to have named her daughter in honor of six-year-old Scout from To Kill a Mockingbird.

Take a Walk on the Wild Side

If you love the great outdoors, you’re in good company. Many celebrity baby names are inspired by nature. While parents have always chosen floral names for their daughters, names inspired by fruits, trees, and animals are becoming increasingly popular.

Gwyneth Paltrow’s daughter Apple Blythe would likely get along well with Claudia Schiffer’s girl Clementine. Will Smith named his daughter Willow, while Forest Whitaker went with Ocean for his newborn son and Erykah Badu choose the name Puma for her daughter.

Put Last Names First

One of the hottest baby-naming trends is giving children first names that were once only used as surnames. You may opt to give your child your maiden name as his/her first name. Choosing the last name of a friend, mentor, or close relative is also a great way to personalize your child’s name. If you’d like to choose a gender-neutral name, this approach works well since names like Sullivan, Finnegan, or Delaney are appropriate for both sexes.

Angie Harmon chose the names Avery Grace and Finley Faith for her daughters. Patricia Arquette’s daughter is Harlow Jane and Thandie Newton picked the name Ripley for her little girl.

Embrace Simplicity

While it was once fashionable to give your baby a long, elegant-sounding name, the latest trend is to select names that are short and sweet. As an added bonus, these modern celebrity baby names are both easy to spell and pronounce.

Heidi Klum named her daughter Leni, while Courtney Cox-Arquette preferred Coco for her little girl. Ben Stiller’s daughter goes by Ella, while both Reese Witherspoon and Heather Locklear have baby girls named Ava. Corey Feldman chose the name Zen Scott for his son.