Nameberry of the Day: Khaleesi
April 17
The extraordinarily popular fantasy drama television series Game of Thrones premiered on April 17, 2011, propelling the name Khaleesi — an invented title meaning “queen” in the show’s imagined world — up the charts.
Game of Thrones, based on a book series by George R. R. Martin, was highly influential in the naming world — from under-appreciated international gems like Arya, Sansa, and Theon, to names invented just for the series including Daenerys, Tyrion, Cersei, and of course, Khaleesi.
In the books and show, Khaleesi is not a name in and of itself, but instead is a royal title held by the character Daenerys Targaryen.
However, many parents saw potential in Khaleesi, and the name entered the US Top 1000 in 2014 where has stayed to this day. And over in the UK, the name Khaleesi has had a similar reign.
This is not as surprising as it initially seems. Invented literary names are nothing new — the names Jessica, Olivia, Miranda, Vanessa, and Wendy were all invented for fictional characters. And royal and larger-than-life names are hotter than ever, with the US Top 1000 featuring monikers like King, Legacy, Reign, Saint, Princess, Royal, and Legend.
In Case You Missed These Nameberries of the Day:
Nameberry of the Week: Xanthe
Each Sunday, in replacement of the usual Name of the Day newsletter, we will be featuring a Name of the Week chosen by you! The Name of the Week will be selected through the “name of the day” thread over on the forums, where you can share a name you are feeling
Name of the Week: Sahar
This week’s Name of the Week was nominated by @rhodes2nowhere! If you would like to nominate a name yourself, you can head over to the name of the day thread on our forums. Subscribe Sahar is a striking Arabic girl’s name meaning “dawn” — a symbol of