--- title: How 'The Hunger Games' Helped Name America’s Babies description: Why does Katniss have so much appeal? canonical: https://time.com/3598399/hunger-games-katniss-baby-names/ author: TIME article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-11-20T22:01:27.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-21T11:36:29.707Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: People Are Naming Their Babies Katniss og:description: See the history of franchise-inspired baby naming og:url: https://time.com/3598399/hunger-games-katniss-baby-names/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb0a429222bc83bee/69876452cd1bba5a3a6f3029/hunger-games-mockingjay.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: The Hunger Games: Mockingjay - Part 1 og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: People Are Naming Their Babies Katniss twitter:description: See the history of franchise-inspired baby naming twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb0a429222bc83bee/69876452cd1bba5a3a6f3029/hunger-games-mockingjay.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # People Are Naming Their Babies Katniss Thanks to _The Hunger Games_ > Sponsored content. 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No monthly maintenance fees. No overdraft fees, no hidden fine print, no hoops for better rates. * 24/7 human support from real humans, not bots. ### FAQ #### Who is Ally Bank? Ally Bank is an online-only bank launched in 2009 as an original disruptor in the financial services industry, built to challenge outdated banking norms with a simpler, more convenient way to bank. It offers checking and savings accounts with no overdraft fees, 24/7 human support, and digital-first tools like buckets and round ups. Deposits are FDIC-insured up to the maximum amount allowed by law. #### Is Ally good for everyday banking? Ally is built for everyday banking, spending, and saving. Its Spending Account is a checking account that includes early direct deposit (paychecks up to 2 days early), access to 75,000+ fee-free ATMs nationwide, the ability to add cash for free at participating locations nationwide, and no overdraft fees. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [Graphiq](https://time.com/author/findthebest/) ## Graphiq Nov 20, 2014 10:01 PM UTC  Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1 Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss Everdeen in The Hunger Games: Mockingjay, Part 1Murray Close—Lionsgate by [Graphiq](https://time.com/author/findthebest/) ## Graphiq Nov 20, 2014 10:01 PM UTC The first _Hunger Games_ scorched its way to the top of the box office. Its $152.5 million opening weekend in North America made it the fifth-highest-grossing debut of all time. The release of the second film—_The Hunger Games: Catching Fire_—didn’t disappoint either_,_ grossing $161 million in its first weekend, overtaking _The Dark Knight Rises_ as the fourth-best debut as well as securing its spot as the highest-grossing debut starring a female lead in history. Nor did theater-goers lose their luster for the films after opening weekend. Together, they’ve raked in about $1.5 billion globally. And with the release of _Mockingjay_—_Part 1_ this Thursday and the last installment still to come, the franchise stands to make a lot more. The movies owe much of their smashing success to Katniss Everdeen, a character all audiences, not just teenage females, have fallen in love with. In fact, crowds over 25 and under 25 were evenly split during _Catching Fire’s_ [opening weekend](http://www.forbes.com/sites/melissasilverstein/2013/11/25/catching-fire-does-super-hero-numbers-and-becomes-highest-opening-weekend-starring-a-female-lead/). And while there were more women than men in attendance—59 percent female vs. 41 percent male—crowds were more evenly split by weekend number two, comprised of 51 percent females and 49 percent males. Compare that to an [80 percent](http://www.cinemablend.com/new/Does-Breaking-Dawn-Aging-Audience-Prove-Twilight-Just-Fad-27996.html) female audience for Twilight. So why does Katniss have so much appeal? According to Jennifer Lawrence in an interview with [NPR](http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=149165794), “She’s not a hero…she’s just a girl who’s standing up for what’s right when something is wrong, when it’s hard – and when it’s scary.” Whatever the attraction is that’s driving voracious appetites at the box office, it’s not only in record-breaking sales where Katniss Everdeen is leaving a mark. She’s also left a mark—a very permanent mark—in the lives of dozens of baby girls across the U.S. Why? They’ve been given her name. That’s right, 29 girls have been named Katniss since the release of the first _Hunger Games_ in 2012, according to an [analysis](http://names.findthebest.com/?utm%5Fmedium=publishing&utm%5Fsource=time&utm%5Fcampaign=ao.p&utm%5Fcontent=hunger-games&utm%5Fterm=analysis) by research engine [FindTheBest.](http://www.findthebest.com/?utm%5Fmedium=publishing&utm%5Fsource=time&utm%5Fcampaign=ao.p&utm%5Fcontent=hunger-games&utm%5Fterm=FindTheBest) That’s up from a grand total of zero baby girls given the name Katniss every year prior. It’s not only Katniss who’s inspiring a baby name trend. Strong female characters in popular literature turned film have influenced the names of hundreds of baby girls. Take Harry Potter’s leading lady, Hermione Granger. Her name stayed flat in the single digits from 1932 to 2001, but jumped to 17 occurrences in 2002, the year after the first _Harry Potter_ movie was released. And it didn’t stop there; more than 500 girls have been named Hermione since. HBO’s _Game of Thrones_ is another big name influencer, with Khaleesi (which means queen) leading the way. Like Katniss, the name Khaleesi was virtually nonexistent before Game of Thrones aired in 2011, but it’s been climbing rapidly ever since. Even Khaleesi’s real name, Daenerys, saw a spike that hasn’t stopped climbing in popularity since _Game of Thrones_ aired. And of course, the _Twilight_ saga has influenced names as well. We can’t say for sure if Bella Swan is to credit for the recent uptick in her name—the first _Twilight_ book was published in 2005 and the name has been rising since the 1990s—but we can see the effect other characters have had. Rosalie for example, was a popular name in the 1930s, but didn’t make a comeback until the first _Twilight_ movie was released in 2008. Even Renesmee, a mashup of the names Renée and Esme—two other female characters in the series—sprung into existence in 2008\. Although Renesmee’s character wasn’t in the first _Twilight_ movie, she was in the fourth book, _Breaking Dawn_, which was published in 2008. So what’s next on the baby name front? Maybe parents will take a liking to the name Tris, from the latest book series turned 2014 blockbuster film, _Divergent._ It’s a name that went out of style in the 1970s, but could be due for a comeback. 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