Blake Lively, Ashlee Simpson, Kelly Clarkson and Mark Zuckerburg are just some of the celebrity parents who have surprised with their gender-neutral baby names. Former Gossip Girl actress Blake and husband Ryan Reynolds stunned fans back in 2014 by naming their daughter James, a moniker which continues to be a top choice for UK boys. Explaining their decision at the time, Blake said she "liked having a boy's name", whilst husband Ryan explained: "In the spectrum of weird celebrity baby names, I feel like we’re not really breaking any new ground here. I mean, I didn't call her Summer Squash Meadow Lark, or something."
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Jagger, inspired by Rolling Stones frontman Mick Jagger, has also become a favourite unisex option. While it is most often used for boys, in 2015 Ashlee Simpson used it for her first daughter. A source close to the couple confirmed to E! News at the time that the pair "wanted something fun and different."
© Photo: iStockMost recently Jools and Jamie Oliver named their son River, but this poetic nature-inspired name was first chosen by Kelly Clarkson for her daughter three years ago. "I like androgynous names," the singer told People magazine in 2015. "We live on a river, so it really wasn't that creative," Kelly said with a laugh. "We were outside on our balcony, and we both looked at each other and were like, 'What about River? That's kind of cool.'"
If like these celebrities you are looking to give your baby a modern and unisex name, look no further. HELLO! have chosen 20 unique monikers from BabyCentre's gender-neutral baby name list:
Ari, Bay, Brook, Charlie, Drew, Eddie, Eli, Frances, Gray, Harper, Jamie, Jules, Kaden, Lake, Max, Peyton, Riley, River, Roan, Winter.
