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Khaleesi (given name)

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Khaleesi
Daenerys Targaryen cosplayer, 2012
PronunciationEnglish: /kəˈliːsiː/
Genderfemale
Origin
Word/nameCreated literary name from constructed language Dothraki
Meaningqueen
Other names
Related namesCaleesi, Daenerys, Kaleesi, Khaleesie, Khalesi, Khalessi
A cat named Khaleesi. Both children and pets worldwide were named for the character Daenerys Targaryen.

Khaleesi is a feminine given name derived from the Dothraki title meaning queen that was used for the fictional character Daenerys Targaryen in American author George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire books and in Game of Thrones, the television series based upon the novels.

The intended pronunciation of the word from the constructed language used in the television series varied from the pronunciation originally intended by linguist David J. Peterson. Peterson pronounced the word as English: /kəˈleɪsiː/ (kə-LAY-see) or English: /kəˈleɪəsiː/ (kə-LAY-ə-see) while the pronunciation used in the television series was English: /kəˈliːsiː/ (kə-LEE-see).

Parents who chose the name for their daughters said they were attracted by the strength and beauty of the character, who liberated slaves and overcame obstacles to assume power in her own right. Pet owners also named their animals after the character. The dark turn taken by the character and her ultimate fate on the 2010s television series prompted discussion about whether parents would regret using the name for their daughters.

Usage

The name Khaleesi remains in regular use and, as of 2023, had been among the thousand most popular names in use for girls in the United States since 2014. It is also in use in other countries. Daenerys, the name of the character, declined in popularity after the end of the series but also remains in regular use. There were 108 newborn American girls who were given the name in 2021. Another 123 newborn American girls were given the name in 2022 and another 125 in 2023.

In August 2024 the United Kingdom passport office declined to issue a six-year-old British girl a passport on the grounds that the child's given name Khaleesi was under Warner Bros. trademark. After the story was reported in the media and it was determined that a name given to a child at birth cannot be trademarked, with the family's solicitors also arguing that trademarks are for goods and services not for personal names, the decision was reversed.

References

  1. Das, Abhimanyu (9 April 2019). "Meet the Person Who Created Dothraki and Valyrian for Game of Thrones -- And Learn How 'Khaleesi' Should Have Been Said". TED. Retrieved 5 November 2023.
  2. Longridge, Chris (14 March 2019). "Everyone's been pronouncing 'Khaleesi' wrong all this time". digitalspy.com. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  3. Matthews, Dylan (9 April 2014). "Before Game of Thrones, no one named babies "Khaleesi." In 2012, it beat the name "Betsy."". Vox. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  4. "Are people really calling their baby girls Khaleesi?", The Guardian, 15 August 2014, retrieved 7 May 2022
  5. Safronova, Valeriya (29 April 2019). "Hello, Arya! 'Game of Thrones' Baby Names Are for Girls: Baby names inspired by the powerful women on "Game of Thrones" are rising in popularity". New York Times. Retrieved 3 June 2022.
  6. Pelletiere, Nicole (3 May 2019). "This mom and 'Game of Thrones' superfan named her daughter Khaleesi". Good Morning America. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  7. Murphy, Joe (10 May 2019). "Name of Thrones: Parents are naming their kids after favorite 'Game of Thrones' characters: "If it's a boy it's Aegon, if it's a girl we'll call her Myrcella."". nbcnews.com. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  8. Ingraham, Christopher (13 May 2019), "Why at least 3,500 parents may be having regrets after last night's 'Game of Thrones'", Washington Post, retrieved 7 May 2022
  9. McGovern, Kyle (13 May 2019), "So You Named Your Kid Daenerys. How's That Feel Now?", New York Magazine, retrieved 7 May 2022
  10. "Change in Popularity from 2020 to 2021". ssa.gov. United States Social Security Administration. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 7 May 2022.
  11. Selcke, Dan (20 April 2022). "Babies named "Daenerys" shot up 700% after Game of Thrones premiered". winteriscoming.net. Retrieved 5 June 2022.
  12. "Names that increased in popularity from 2021 to 2022". ssa.gov. United States Social Security Administration. 12 May 2023. Retrieved 12 May 2023.
  13. "Beyond the Top 1000 names". ssa.gov. United States Social Security Administration. 6 May 2022. Retrieved 7 June 2022.
  14. Yhnell, Rhiannon (2024-08-01). "Game of Thrones name sparks passport mix-up for family". BBC News. Retrieved 2024-08-12.
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