Hit ‘Star Wars’ movie could lead to popular baby names

Move over “Game of Thrones,” it looks like a resurgent “Star Wars” is the new biggest pop culture influence on baby names.
In its forecast for the hottest baby names for 2016, Nameberry predicts we’ll be seeing a lot of Star Wars-influenced baby names in the New Year.
“Luke and Leia may be old baby name news, but Anakin is way up in the national standing already. And with director J.J. Abrams talking widely about the names of new characters, we predict the rise in 2016 of such Star Wars-influenced names as Poe, Finn, Rey, Hux, Kylo, Ren, even Dameron,” the website said. “We can also see the actors’ names taking off: Oscar and Isaac, Adam and Driver, Daisy and Ridley.”
But the biggest baby naming trend in 2016 will be “postgender names,” Nameberry said.
“Names will no longer be designated strictly as girls’ names or boys’ names but will be used more fluidly for children of either gender,” Nameberry said.
As examples, it cited the emergence of transgender celebrity Caitlyn Jenner and newborn Max, the daughter of Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg and Dr. Priscilla Chan.
“We’ve seen other high-profile little girls named Armie, Wilder, Ryan, Andy, and Jagger; boys named Indigo, Blues, and Rhodes, and celebrity babies of both sexes named James, Charlie, Sailor, Dashiell, Sparrow, Arlo, and Bodhi,” Nameberry said. “James has become the standard-issue middle name for both genders, and names such as Eden, Sasha, Remy, and Rory are rising for both boys and girls.”

Photo: Promotional art for “Star Wars: The Force Awakens.”