What’s In A Name? Top Baby Names in NOVA, Hollywood Are Worlds Apart

Community Editor Jessie Biele reported and wrote this story. Regional Editor Beth Lawton contributed reporting.

Kim Kardashian and rapper Kanye West have announced the name of their newborn daughter.

And odds are she won’t have to share a name with anyone else on the playground.

Celebrity gossip website TMZ reported Thursday the baby’s name is North West.

This news has blown up on social media. Many people on Facebook and Twitter had strong reactions to the name:

Northern Virginia resident @mickychas says, "So Kim and Kanye have named their child North. So if the child becomes a fashion designer, will her line be called 'North by North West'?"

Unique baby names have made headlines in recent years in celebrity circles.

In 2004, singer Chris Martin and actress Gwyneth Paltrow made headlines when they named their daughter Apple.  Since then, unusual baby names have been a Hollywood trend.

But outside of Hollywood, conventional baby names are the norm.Sophia, Emma, and Isabella are the top three names for baby girls in the U.S. in 2012, and Jacob, Mason, and Ethan top the list of names for little boys, according to the Social Security Administration.

In 2012, the boys' names Liam and Elijah cracked the top five most popular baby names in Virginia—those names were not in the top five in 2011.

The top five girls' names were the same in 2012 and 2011 (with a slight shift in order).

The top five baby names in Virginia, according to the SSA:

Boys

1. William (641 babies)

2. Mason (543 babies)

3. Liam (497 babies)

4. Jacob (480 babies)

5. Elijah (476 babies)

Girls

1. Sophia (512 babies)

2. Emma (511 babies)

3. Olivia (493 babies)

4. Abigail (398 babies)

5. Isabella (385 babies)

You can look up the most popular baby names for 2012 for Virginia (and any other state) here.

What’s your take on baby names? Is there a unique story behind your own (or your child’s) name? Tell us in the comments below.