The influencer baby names making it from our FYP to actual birth certificates

Naming a baby used to mean flipping through a dog-eared baby name book and maybe calling your mom to ask about family names. Those days are over. Now parents are scrolling through TikTok for inspiration, and I’m not sure how I feel about living in a world where your kid might share a name with someone whose biggest achievement is going viral for a dance they didn’t even create.

A new analysis of 2024 Social Security Administration data from BeenVerified reveals what many of us suspected: the internet is officially naming our babies. Names like Nova, Kai, and Addison—all tied to social media influencers—are climbing the charts and creating some of the most unique daycare rosters we’ve ever seen.

As a millennial mom who somehow built a career in media while maintaining a healthy skepticism of influencer culture, I’m watching this trend of influencer baby names unfold with fascination. 

From Saints to screen time: How we got here

Baby names used to come with real stories. Margaret was named after Great-Grandmother Margaret who survived the Depression by standing in bread lines wearing dresses made from flour sacks. Joseph honored the Biblical titan and likely multiple generations of Joe’s who endured hardships of their own.

Then Hollywood got in the game. The 1960s brought us “Jennifer” thanks to Love Story and stayed fresh through the 80s and 90s. The 80s were very “Heather” heavy both in nurseries and on screen. (A film which gave us one of the best movie quotes of all time, “​​If you were happy every day of your life, you wouldn’t be a human being; you’d be a gameshow host.”) Then the 90s blessed us with approximately one million “Britney’s” (or Brittney, Brittany, or Britanny) courtesy of Ms. Spears. But at least those names have staying power. Friends still has millions of viewers and even my teenager knows Jennifer Aniston. Britney might be Instagram dancing a call for help, but she’s still an icon. These names are cultural touchstones, not necessarily trendy flashes in the pan.

The data behind the trend

The numbers don’t lie. According to the 2024 Social Security Administration data, influencer-inspired names are having a moment:

Nova (#39 for girls, 5,044 births) rides the Instagram-worthy aesthetic wave—you know, minimalist nurseries and captions about “manifesting magic under the stars.”

Kai (#76 for boys, 4,276 births) has that cool surfer-slash-wellness-influencer vibe that screams “my baby definitely does baby yoga.”

Addison (#68 for girls, 3,327 births) shot up thanks to TikTok star Addison Rae, who went from dancing on TikTok to dancing with millions of followers and a makeup line.

The Kardashian effect of celebrity baby names is undeniable too. Saint (#282, 1,195 births) and Stormi (#790, 356 births) went from “never heard of it” to birth certificate material faster than I scroll past “news” about their family. 

My take: Names that last

When I was pregnant with my son, I wanted a name with personality but not so unique that he’d spend his childhood spelling it out. We landed on Kiernan—distinctive enough to avoid “Kiernan S.” in kindergarten, but not so out there that baristas would give up.

For my daughter, I went classic with Josephine. Not just because it’s beautiful and I’m a sucker for French baby names, but because it has layers. Josephine Baker, the OG influencer who used her platform for actual social change. Jo March, literature’s ultimate feminist icon. Plus seventeen nickname options for when she inevitably reinvents herself after heading to college. 

I wanted names with substance—stories that would still make sense when they’re sixty, not just names that would look cute on an Instagram post.

The problem with trending influencer baby names

Here’s where my millennial cynicism kicks in: influencer names have the shelf life of a trending hashtag. What happens when the wellness influencer your kid is named after gets canceled? When the TikTok star fades into irrelevance?

The names that survive attach to multiple cultural touchpoints. Zara (currently ranked at #234 with 1,327 babies in 2024) works because it’s not just an influencer—it’s got Arabic roots and it’s a variant of the astronomically popular–though fading–Sara. (As a Sara, I will also attest to the issues caused by having the same name as 12 other girls in your class and at least two people who also have orders ready at Starbucks.) It’s also a major fashion brand which makes it feel a bit more familiar. Kai resonates across K-pop, sports, and surf culture.

But Stormi? Saint? These names live and die by their famous associations. What’s it going to be like when nursing homes are full of residents named after reality TV babies?

When parenthood becomes performance

This trend reflects how parenthood itself has become content creation. We’re living in the age of “sharenting,” where choosing a name isn’t just about what sounds nice when calling them for dinner—it’s about how it looks in a birth announcement, how it hashtags, whether it fits your family’s “brand.”

Names have gone from private and personal to public and performative. That feels like a lot of pressure to put on a tiny human who can’t even support their own head–someone who may not even like what you’ve chosen by the time they’re a teenager with opinions on literally everything. 

The bottom line

If you genuinely love Nova because it means “new star,” go for it. But maybe pause before naming your kid after someone whose entire identity revolves around a social media platform that might not exist when your child graduates high school.

Here’s the thing: times change, and inspiration comes from everywhere. Getting excited about a name because of an influencer you admire isn’t inherently different from choosing one because of a favorite book character or family friend. We all create our own stories anyway—your Nova might become a NASA scientist, and suddenly that “influencer name” has a whole new meaning.

But it’s worth asking: does this name give my child room to grow? Will it still feel right when they’re discovering who they are beyond any association I had when I picked it? The best names, whether they’re trending or traditional, leave space for kids to write their own stories.

We’re all just doing our best here, making choices with love and hope for tiny humans who will surprise us in ways we can’t imagine. That’s pretty beautiful, no matter where the inspiration comes from.