Certain moments in pop culture inspire baby name surges, whether it's the names of celebs or the fictional characters they portray.
For example, the name Liam surged into the top 1000 baby names in 1994, the year Liam Neeson starred in Schindler's List, eventually reaching #2 in 2013.
Bella had a surge in 2010 thanks in part to the Twilight film series.
Adele soared on the list of most popular baby names after Adele released her album 21 in 2011.
And don't forget Ariel, which spiked to number 66 in the wake of the popularity of The Little Mermaid.
So, George Takei asked his Twitter followers:
Which celebrity or character from pop culture were you named after, friends?
\u201cWhich celebrity or character from pop culture were you named after, friends?\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
And people did not hold back from revealing the pop culture origins of their names.
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Gary Cooper\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Nancy Sinatra.\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Sir Sean Connery.\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Darren, from Bewitched. True story\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Amy from Little Women. Not exactly pop culture, but that term didn\u2019t even exist back then. \ud83d\ude0b\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
Some people brought the GIFs.
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Jaclyn Smith of Charlie\u2019s Angels fame here.\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Marcie from Peanuts.\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Heidi\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Donna Reed\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1662868620
Don't forget the names inspired by pop music!
\u201c@GeorgeTakei I was named after the Buddy Holly song Peggy Sue. Does that count?\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1662868620
\u201c@GeorgeTakei I named my daughter after my favorite album: Abbey\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1662868620
\u201c@GeorgeTakei I was named after the song \u201cThe Happy Wanderer\u201d\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1662868620
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Lizzo #duh\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
Not to mention those Star Trek fan parents!
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Born in '67 to a Star Trek fan father, he made my middle name Kirk.\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
\u201c@GeorgeTakei Nichelle Nichols.\u201d— George Takei (@George Takei) 1665534781
Who were you named after?
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@vivllainous/TikTok
@MarkJCarney/X
@petebuttigieg.bsky.social