

There are geek names, and then there are geek names. Plenty of fanboys and fangirls take baby name inspiration from favorite characters, but for most the choice is subtle. You can name your son Malcolm after Firefly's Captain Mal Reynolds and your in-laws will be none the wiser.

Today, we acknowledge those parents who have taken a bolder step into fandom, daring to go where few names have gone before. Each of the proudly geeky names below was given to at least five American babies last year.



Image via kazz.0/Flicker

NAME (SEX, NUMBER BORN IN 2014)

Anakin (M, 218) : Darth Vader now ranks among the top 1,000 names for boys. The Empire has won.

Eevee (F, 24) : A genetically flexible fox-like Pokemon. A Pokemon!!!

Ender (M, 118) : Naming after Ender Wiggin of Ender's Game gives your child an early introduction to life's moral complexities.

Stark (M, 20) : This name could solve baby-name arguments in mixed marriages between a Marvel loyalist and a Game of Thrones fan: "Iron Man wants you to know that Winter is Coming."

Sephiroth (M, 7) : The archvillain of the game Final Fantasy VII, with his long black coat and flowing silver hair, is the epitome of evil fashion.

Kal-El (M, 257) : Phew. In a baby-name faceoff of good versus evil, Superman (born Kal-El) outranks Darth Vader (born Anakin).

Tron (M, 11) : The 1982 film TRON transports us into the heart of a computer, where an artificial intelligence called Tron takes the form of a glowing Bruce Boxleitner.

Quorra (F, 26) : In the 2010 sequel TRON: Legacy, Quorra is a skilled pilot and warrior -- unusual skill sets for an algorithm.

Draco(M, 42) : A Death Eater with a name that means "dragon." Don't mess with this infant.

Garrus (M, 9) : Most names from action games are more macho than geeky, but it helps that Mass Effect's Garrus Vakarian is a raptor-headed alien.

Jadzia (F, 19) : Jadzia Dax of Star-Trek: Deep Space Nine shares her mind with a symbiotic organism. Two for the price of one! (On Earth Jadzia is also a Polish nickname, but its American usage started with Deep Space Nine.)

Korra (F, 87) : The element bender of the animated series "The Legend of Korra" nearly dies fighting for peace, but does gain a cute girlfriend along the way.

Tidus (M, 43) : The protagonist of Final Fantasy X, Tidus is the rare video game hero who is regularly described as "cheerful."

Lando (M, 9) : In the original Star Wars trilogy, Lando Calrissian is a charming gambler and smuggler -- basically like Han Solo, but way better at it.

Tyrion (M, 60) : The "imp" Tyrion is the heart (or perhaps the brain) of Game of Thrones.

Winry (F, 32) : If you need a prosthetic limb repaired, Winry Rockbell of Fullmetal Alchemist is your woman.

Xena (F, 71) : Xena the Warrior Princess injected the familiar underdressed-warrior-woman trope with a new element: humanity. This is a name that kicks butt, with feeling.

Tauriel (F, 20) : Ooh, we're off canon! This attractively named elf from The Hobbit movie wasn't in Tolkein's book. And in other Hobbit book vs. movie news...

Thorin (M, 112) : ...note that these babies were named for dwarf leader Thorin Oakenshield before the final installment of the movie came out. Hopefully the parents read the book and knew what they (and Thorin) were in for.

Loki (M, 111) : The trickster god Loki is an age-old fixture of Norse myth, but nobody named after him until he became a snazzy Marvel supervillain.

Jedi (M, 21) : The force is with these youngsters.