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The 10 most unusual celebrity children’s names, from Apple to Exa Dark Sideræl

From left to right: Kim Kardashian with daughter North West; Gwyneth Paltrow with daughter Apple; and Grimes (Getty)
From left to right: Kim Kardashian with daughter North West; Gwyneth Paltrow with daughter Apple; and Grimes (Getty)

Whenever celebrities have their own children, fans often sit up and take notice of which names they’ve chosen.

In recent years, many famous parents have picked rather unconventional names for their offspring, often sparking widespread bemusement and theories about why they’ve chosen said name.

Choosing a name for a child can be a big deal for those who want their kids to stand out from the crowd with original and individually distinct names. Celebrities are no different – no matter how, ahem, questionable their choices might be.

These unorthodox names have previously made headlines when announced. Most recently, Grimes and Elon Musk caused a flurry after revealing the names of their two children, with the singer announcing last week that, despite shortening her daughter’s name, it still wasn’t recognised by the government.

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From Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin, to Nick Cannon and his multiple parenting partners, we’re taking a look at 10 of the most unique celebrity children’s names...

Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin: Apple

While they were far from the first celebrity couple to give their child an unusual name, Goop founder Gwyneth Paltrow and Coldplay frontman Chris Martin certainly kickstarted the trend when they announced their daughter’s name to the world.

Apple Blythe Alison Martin was born in May 2004, when Paltrow and Martin were still married. The couple’s marriage lasted from 2003 to 2016.

Last year, Paltrow explained how her daughter came to be named after a red fruit.

Answering a fan question via People, she said: “Her dad came up with the name and I fell in love with it. I thought it was original and cool. I can’t imagine her being called anything else!”

Gwyneth Paltrow and daughter Apple watching Coldplay perform at Live 8 in 2005 (MJ Kim/Getty Images)
Gwyneth Paltrow and daughter Apple watching Coldplay perform at Live 8 in 2005 (MJ Kim/Getty Images)

Grimes and Elon Musk: X Æ A-Xii and Exa Dark Sideræl Musk

Grimes gave birth to her and Tesla billionaire Elon Musk’s son in 2020. The couple baffled everybody when they announced his name was X Æ A-Xii.

The 32-year-old singer explained that the first “X” is a mathematical reference, while “Æ” is the Elven spelling of AI (artificial intelligence), while “A-Xii” is a precursor to the aircraft SR-17, which is the former couple’s favourite.

They call the two-year-old X for short.

If that wasn’t confusing enough, they named their daughter, who was born via surrogate in 2022, Exa Dark Sideræl Musk. However, they now call her Y (pronounced “why”) for short.

Grimes tweeted: “She’s Y now, or ‘Why?’ or just ‘?’ (But the government won’t recognise that),” the scuriosity, the eternal question, .. and such.”

Nick Cannon and Abby De La Rosa: Zillion and Zion, and Beautiful Zeppelin

Nick Cannon has become known for his many, many children – welcoming his 12th in December – all of whom have unusual names.

But his three children with model Abby De La Rosa are perhaps the most unique of his entire brood. In an interview with The Shade Room, Cannon explained how each of his children were named and said that Abby wanted to name her children with Z names.

“So Zion, Zillion, and then we were going to go Zeppelin for our daughter, because it was going to be all three,” Cannon said. “But I was like, ‘She’s so beautiful, that’s her name’. Beautiful Zeppelin. We call her Bizzy.”

His other children are named Morroccan and Monroe (with Mariah Carey); Golden, Powerful Queen and Rise (with Brittany Bell); Legendary Love (with Bre Tiesi); Onyx (with Lanisha Cole); Zen and Halo (with Alyssa Scott).

Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon with Moroccan Scott Cannon and Monroe Cannon at the 31st Annual Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in 2018 (AFP via Getty Images)
Mariah Carey and Nick Cannon with Moroccan Scott Cannon and Monroe Cannon at the 31st Annual Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Awards in 2018 (AFP via Getty Images)

Kim Kardashian and Kanye West: North, Saint, Chicago and Psalm

Kim Kardashian and ex-husband Kanye West have four children together, all of whom have names that aren’t the most popular.