Star Wars Name Cracks Top 1000 Baby Names In America

A new study has revealed the name Anakin - as in Anakin Skywalker, the birth name of ‘Star Wars’ villain Darth Vader - is now one of the top 1000 baby names in America.

The report by the U.S. Official Social Security Administration shows that 218 baby boys were named after the Dark Lord of the Sith in 2014 making it the 957th most popular name in the country.

In comparison, a whopping 10,431 were named Luke but that’s a biblical name so it doesn’t count. Han, Lando, or Chewbacca didn’t crack the Top 1000.

The enduring popularity of Anakin as a baby name can probably be attributed to the ‘Star Wars: Clone Wars’ cartoon in which the future Darth Vader plays an anti-hero role.

Leia is still popular amongst baby girls with 605 tots named after the ‘Star Wars’ heroine, but creeping up the girl name list is Khaleesi with 368 babies named after the ‘Game of Thrones’ character played by Emilia Clarke.

As a ‘Game of Thrones’ pedant, I must point out that her character’s name is actually Daenerys Targaryen, NOT Khaleesi. Khaleesi is the Dothraki title bestowed on her when she married Khal Drogo in S1, and it translates to something similar to “Queen”.

Nerd rant over.

H/T: EW.com

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Image credits: 20th Century Fox/LucasFilm