Get the up-to-the-minute word on what's hot and what's not in babies' names and make sure you're as hip as any celeb with the ultimate naming guide, Cool Names for Babies

Baby naming seems to have become a competitive sport among celebrities. The goal: the coolest name in town - a difficult task when your colleagues' babies are named Rafferty, Jaz, and Rebel.

And what are we poor mortals to do, hearing such baby names? If not follow suit, then at least we can feel inspired to be a bit more adventurous in our choices of names. Just as celebrities influence our taste in clothes, hair and make-up, they also give us a new template for baby naming.

Here are the coolest celeb baby names of recent years and the famous parents who chose them.

Alaia Stephen Baldwin
Unusual, haunting and lyrical.

Amandine John Malkovich
A distinctive Gallic name with a French sense of style. Plus, it has an appealing nutty flavour.

Apple Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin
The coolest parents around come up with a suitably hip name.

Assisi Jade Jagger
Sir Mick's granddaughter was given this unique name, evocative of the lovely Umbrian hill town.

Atticus Isabella Hoffman and Daniel Baldwin
Associated by most people with the noble lawyer played by Gregory Peck in the classic film To Kill a Mockingbird.

Ava Aidan Quinn/Reese Witherspoon and Ryan Philippe/John McEnroe
One of the hottest celebrity favourites.

Banjo Patrick and Rachel Griffiths
The name of one of the main characters in the classic comedy The Man Who Came to Dinner. For more conservative occasions, he can always be called Jo.

Betty Kitten Jane Goldman and Jonathan Ross
Could any pair of names give off a more retro-camp vibe than this? Siblings are Honey Kinney and Harvey Kirby.

Blue Angel Dave Evans
U2's 'The Edge' earns his own epithet in making this fringe choice for his daughter.

Chester Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks
It's fashionable partly because this megawatt Hollywood couple chose it.

Cosima Nigella Lawson
Elegant and exotic.

Daisy Boo Jamie Oliver
The playful middle name makes it stand out.

Dexter Diane Keaton
A nerdy boy's name comes alive when given to a girl.

Dixie Dot and Bibi Belle Anna Ryder Richardson
Tons of alliterative pizzazz!

Elijah Bob Patricus Guggi Q Bono
Don't try this at home.

Gulliver Gary Oldman
Has an engaging energy.

Iris Sadie Frost and Jude Law
These cool baby namers picked a bloom that has long been out of fashion and made it cool again.

Levi Roan Green Uma Thurman and Ethan Hawke
Levi is one of the few biblical boys' names to escape overuse and remain cool.

Mabel Tracey Ullman
Straddles the line between camp and cool.

Maddox Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt
A surname-name with a twist thanks to the final 'x'.

Milo Ricky Lake
Jaunty.

Ocean, True and Sonnet Forest Whitaker
Retro charm - hippie days are here again.

Pilot Inspektor Jason Lee
This film star took the impending trend of word/profession names and doubled it, adding a spelling variant for good measure.

Racer, Rebel, Rocket Robert Rodriguez
This American film director is definitely of the school that believes in giving kids names they have to live up to - or live down.

Ripley Thandie Newton
A powerful, androgynous name.

Rocco Madonna
The power of Madonna: making this muscle-bound he-man name cool outside Sicily.

Satchel Spike Lee/Woody Allen
Revived from baseball history.

Seven Erykah Badu
On Seinfeld, George once decided that the ultimate cool baby name was a number, Seven. Singer and actress Badu apparently agreed.

Taj Steven Tyler
Short, catchy and exotically imaginative.

Tallulah Demi Moore and Bruce Willis
This pair launched the cool star baby name concept when they chose Scout and Rumer as well as the more user-friendly Tallulah.

Truman Rita Wilson and Tom Hanks
Seriously, almost presidentially, cool.

Willow Will Smith and Jada Pinkett Smith
A graceful nature name that also relates to Dad's name (as son Jaden's does to Mum's).

Zola Eddie Murphy
Seductive with a twist.

Information taken from Cool Names for Babies, published by Collins, price £4.99. Buy it now