Parents are naming their babies after Instagram filters, Empire characters

Four babies.
(Image credit: iStock)

When it comes to baby names, new parents are turning to a Fox drama about a hip hop mogul and his family, an app popular with narcissists, and outer space for inspiration.

BabyCenter, a website offering pregnancy and parenting advice, looked at the names of 340,000 babies born in 2015 to registered users. For the sixth year in a row, Sophia is the number one name for girls (with Emma, Olivia, Ava, and Mia close behind), and for the third time in a row, Jackson is in the top spot for boys (followed by Aiden, Liam, Lucas, and Noah). While the most popular names aren't a surprise, some of the more creative names certainly are — including Royalty (up 90 percent from last year for both boys and girls) and Sultan (up 25 percent).

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Catherine Garcia, The Week US

Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.