Top 10 Craziest Celebrity Baby Names of 2008

2008 was quite a year for celebrity babies, with stars like Angelina Jolie, Christina Aguilera and Nicole Richie all adding little ones to their lives. But it wasn't just the big star status that was turning heads about these babies-it was their names too.

Celebrities are notorious for choosing baby names that are out of the ordinary, to say the least. From Moon Unit Zappa to Fifi Trixibelle Geldof to Kal-el Coppola Cage, celebrity babies have long been the victims of naming nightmares. But on the other side of the coin, innovation can lead to new discoveries. Parents get tired of the same old standards, and unusual names are desirable in the modern fast-growing world. Celebrity names often influence the naming trends in the general populace, so we can either feed on their creativity or learn from their mistakes. Below is a list of the ten craziest celebrity baby names of 2008. Be sure to read all ten!

10. Gia Zavala Damon

Born August 20, 2008, Gia Zavala is the daughter of actor Matt Damon. Gia is a short form of the Italian name Gianna. Zavala is a surname of Basque origin. Match this with the English/Scottish surname Damon, and it makes for one multi-cultural name! Damon's wife is Argentine, so the choice of the name Zavala may be in tribute to a family name.

9.Finley and Harper Lockwood

Born October 7, 2008, twin girls Finley and Harper are the daughters of singer Lisa Marie Presley and producer Michael Lockwood. You may not know many baby Harpers right now, but it's actually been increasing in popularity since 2004. Finley has too, but not as quickly. Okay, so these aren't the most outrageous names, but they still caught the public's attention.

8. Ignatius Martin Upton

Born April 13, 2008, Ignatius Martin is the son of actress Cate Blanchett and screenwriter Andrew Upton. There's nothing unusual about Martin, but Ignatius is a rare and archaic Latin name most often associated with the founding of the Jesuits. And the most natural nickname is Iggy.

7.Atticus Affleck

Born January 2008, Atticus is the son of actors Casey Affleck and Summer Phoenix. Atticus is an old Latin name meaning "from Athens," and probably last heard as Atticus Finch, the lawyer from To Kill a Mockingbird. A little more modern-sounding than Ignatius, but not by much.

6.Shaya Braven Charvet

Born March 5, 2008, Shaya Braven is the son of model Brooke Burke and actor David Charvet. Shaya came home to join three sisters named Heaven Rain, Sierra Sky and Neriah, so his unusual name will fit right in with the rest of his family.

5.Nahla Ariela Aubry

Born March 16, 2008, Nahla Ariela is the daughter of actress Halle Berry and model Gabriel Aubry. Ariela is a gorgeous name. So is Nahla, for that matter, and it translates to "honeybee" in Arabic. Very nice. The only teasing on the playground might come from the Disney associations. Nahla sounds just like Nala, the main female lion in The Lion King, and Ariela is just one letter off of Ariel, the name of the mermaid in The Little Mermaid. By themselves, either of these names is a fine choice. Together, they conjure too many cartoons.

4.Bronx Mowgli Wentz

Born November 20, 2008, Bronx Mowgli is the son of musicians Ashlee Simpson and Pete Wentz. Speaking of Disney names, here we have another one with Mowgli, the little boy in The Jungle Book. This name was invented by author Rudyard Kipling for this character, so the associations are even stronger. The first name, Bronx, is innovative, and Bronx will fit right in with the Jolie-Pitt boys, Knox, Maddox and Pax. Wentz is quoted as saying he chose Bronx because the name would fit for either senator or a rock star. Would you vote for Senator Bronx Wentz?

3. Peanut Kai Rademacher

Born July 11, 2008, Peanut Kai is the son of soap opera actor Ingo Rademacher. There are probably a lot of kids who have been called Peanut- as a nickname. But this is the child's legal name. It will be cute while he's little. The middle name, Kai, is Hawaiian, and means "water." Food and drink in the same name. Convenient.

2.Trig Paxson Van Palin

Born April 18, 2008, Trig Paxson Van is the son of Alaska Governor Sarah Palin. Sarah Palin wasn't a celebrity when little Trig was born, but in late August of 2008, Palin became the focus of national spotlights when Senator John McCain nominated her to be his Presidential running mate. The names of Palin's other children also received attention: Track, Bristol, Willow and Piper. Palin claims that Trig is Norse for "strength," and that Paxson is one of her favorite fishing holes in Alaska.

1. Zuma Nesta Rock Rossdale

Born August 21, 2008, Zuma Nesta Rock is the son of musicians Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale. While not as bad as other celebrity baby names like Pilot Inspektor or Zowie Bowie, Zuma Nesta Rock takes the number one position for crazy celebrity baby names in 2008. Rossdale claims that Zuma is named after Zuma Beach, California. The first middle name, Nesta, pays tribute to Bob Marley, whose full name was Nesta Robert Marley. And Rock? Well, they're both rock stars, after all.

Sources

Wiki.Name.com: http://wiki.name.com/en/All_About_Names

Who Dated Who? Celebrity Babies in 2008: http://www.whosdatedwho.com/when/?year=2008&type=26

About.com, "Celebrity Babies Born in 2008" by Diana Mimon: http://gossip.about.com/od/pregnanciesbirths/a/Celeb_08_Baby.htm

Daily News. "What's in the Palin children's names? Fish, for one." by Rich Schapiro: http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/republican_race/2008/08/30/2008-08-30_whats_in_the_palin_childrens_names_fish_.html