The Pippa effect continues as Miss Middleton's moniker beats Mila and Flynn to top list of hot baby names

By Tamara Abraham


The Pippa effect: The Duchess of Cambridge's sister has inspired yet another trend, topping a list of the hottest names for newborns


She's inspired fashion trends, cartoon characters and even has her own Facebook fan site. Now, it seems, Pippa Middleton's influence has extended to baby names.

In a mid-year list of the hottest new names, Philippa, and its derivative Pippa, came out top, a stellar rise given that last year it didn't even make the top 400.

The figures, based on 23million page views on baby name site Nameberry, also found that the name Kate had increased in popularity thanks to media coverage of the Duchess of Cambridge's marriage to Prince William, though not nearly as much as her sister's.


Black Swan star Mila Kunis' first name has also inspired searches, taking it up nearly 40 places, as well as those of celebrities' offspring, such as Isla Fisher and Sacha Baron Cohen's daughter Elula, Toni Colette's son Arlo and Miranda Kerr and Orlando Bloom's son Flynn.

Even Luna, which is believed to have been shortlisted by the Beckhams for their daughter, has ranked more highly than the name they actually chose, Harper Seven.

Posh was on the money when it comes to tapping into trends though, as the literary world has had a strong influence on names over the past six months.

Thanks to the success of bestselling novel The Paris Wife, Hadley, the name of Hemingway’s first wife, has risen 50 places, with Holden, Atticus and Archer all featuring among the most searched.

Trendsetters: Black Swan star Mila Kunis's name has also proved popular, as well as that of Orland Bloom and Miranda Kerr's baby son Flynn


Nameberry's Pamela Redmond Satran explained why literary names - and Archer in particular - had become so popular.

She said: 'Archer, as in Henry James' Portrait of a Lady and Edith Wharton's Age of Innocence, is perfect: It’s unusual, classic yet contemporary-feeling, and there’s no danger of anyone actually having read the books.'

But the most popular of all for baby boys on the site was Asher, which has overtaken the name Henry for the first time.

Also popular for boys was Everett, a trend which breaks from the norm in taking its lead from girls' names like Eva and Evelyn.




source:dailymail