Celebrity baby names that surprised us

Jessica Simpson, 31, hinted that the name would be "nontraditional," that it would be "nothing shocking."

But when Jessica announced that her baby girl's name is "Maxwell Drew Johnson," we were shocked. It's just such a masculine name for the famously girlie southern belle to choose for her daughter. Indeed, wasn't it she who said, “I swear, I will croak if [my] asks me for a pair of Nikes instead of Christian Louboutins!”

Even though the reasons behind "Maxwell Drew" make sense, it's quite a shocker for Jessica, right?

Alicia Silverstone, 35, has become famous for her earthy, unconventional ways. But, really, nothing could have prepared us for the name of her now-one-year-old son, "Bear Blu." Extra surprising? This was probably the first time Alicia's ultra quirky ways really went public. We knew from her Kind Diet book and website that she led an interesting life, but we never imagined she'd be this kind of creative!

Of course, we knew Mariah Carey, 43, and Nick Cannon, 31, would name their now one-year-old twins something outrageous. But who would have thought they'd name their son after some decor?

While their daughter Monroe's name was inspired by the legendary Marilyn, their son was named after the Moroccan-influenced decor in the area of Mariah's NYC apartment in which the couple got engaged. Sure, the name is sentimental, but if they insisted on an "M" name and honouring their apartment decor, then why not the slightly more name-y "Morocco"? "Leave your sister alone, Moroccan!" Hmmm....

Because Natalie Portman, 30, was born in Israel and calls it her home, it's no surprise that she and hubby Benjamin Millepied came up with the Hebrew name "Aleph" for their now-11-month-old son. But there are so many beautiful Hebrew names out there. So, why "Aleph," the first letter in the Hebrew alphabet? Since Natalie strikes us as being on the more conservative side, at least in terms of her taste, this unusual baby name was definitely unexpected.

Speaking of biblical names... The name "Samuel," which Jennifer Garner, 40, and her husband Ben Affleck, 39, chose for their now-two-month-old baby boy is quite common — which is precisely why it was so surprising! Mom and Dad chose relatively unusual names for older sisters Violet, 6, and Seraphina, 5, so we were expecting something a little more out there than "Samuel" for their little guy.

When Jason Bateman, 43, and his wife Amanda Anka, 43, announced the name of their second child, Maple Sylvie Bateman, a couple of months ago, the world went silent with wonder for a little while. "Do we like it?" we wondered. Some of us thought it was quite a lovely name. But then others decided to say it out loud, and what came out was..."Maple Bacon" — add the middle name and you get "Maple Syrup Bacon." Was this a fake name? Were they paying homage to Anka's Canadian roots? Either way it was surprising for low-key, under-the-radar Bateman to cause such a stir with his baby's name!

We hadn't heard the name "Seven" since that famous Seinfeld episode in which George Costanza claimed the baby name as his own. So when the Beckhams announced the birth of their first daughter, Harper Seven Beckham, 9 months ago, were we ever surprised!

While "Harper" was really no stretch, "Seven" was unexpected for fashion designer Victoria Beckham, 38, and her sports-star hubby, David Beckham, 36. But the name was destiny, it seems, with the baby's birth date at 7 a.m. on a Sunday in July, and of course, Dad's No. 7 football jersey.