Grimes And Elon Musk Change Their Baby’s Name

'Roman numerals. Looks better tbh.'

grimes elon musk

by Bonnie McLaren |
Published on

Grimes and Elon Musk recently welcomed their first child, X Æ A-12 - but the couple have already had to change their little boy’s name due to California state law. After Grimes was asked by a fan on Instagram, the singer confirmed that the pair had to change the unusual moniker.

But don’t worry, they haven’t changed the name that much - they’ve just changed the 12 to roman numerals, turning ‘X Æ A-12’ to ‘X Æ A-Xii’ (as thanks to the state's law, numbers aren’t valid in names). Replying to another fan, Grimes said she actually prefers the new name, writing, 'Roman numerals. Looks better tbh'.

The name raised more than a few eyebrows when Musk revealed the moniker after Grimes had given birth on May 4 - and it quickly started trending, with people wondering: a) is the name real and b) how do you pronounce it?

Shortly afterwards, to put all of our minds at rest, the singer confirmed the name and broke down each section of X Æ A-12. 'X’ refers to 'the unknown variable', according to the singer. ‘Æ’ is 'my elven spelling of Ai (love &/or Artificial intelligence)'. Finally, ‘A-12’ is a nod to the 'precursor to SR-17 (our favourite aircraft). No weapons, no defenses, just speed. Great in battle, but non-violent'. And the ‘A’ in the ‘A-12’ is short for Archangel, which she says is her favourite song.

It wasn’t immediately clear how to pronounce the name, but Musk later clarified just how to say it. Speaking on Joe Rogan's podcast, he said: ‘First of all, my partner is the one who, mostly, actually came up with the name. I mean it's just X, the letter X. And then the Æ is, like, pronounced 'ash'... yeah... and then A-12 is my contribution.'

READ MORE: Grimes Shares Video Of Elon Musk And Newborn X Æ A-12

READ MORE: The Most Unusual Celebrity Baby Names

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Unusual celebrity baby names

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Remington Alexander Parents - Kelly Clarkson and Brandon BlackstockForgive us if we are wrong, but has Kelly named her son after her hair straighteners? Her daughter is named River Rose, raising the suspicion that the Heartbeat Song singer is a fan of peculiar names beginning with R.

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Freddie Reign Parents – Louis Tomlinson and Briana JungwirthAn adorable name choice from the pair, who revealed how they chose it together.

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Saint Parents - Kim Kardashian and Kanye WestThe pair quashed any rumours of their second child being called 'east' or 'south' West and settled for 'saint', as Kim referred to her son as a 'blessing' after 'a difficult pregnancy'. Anna Wintour called it 'genius.'

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Wyatt Isabelle Parents – Ashton Kutcher and Mila KunisAshton chose the name Wyatt on a whim. 'So we were going to a Lakers game, and I got name Tourette's,'' he joked. 'I just started listing off anything and everything I saw: 'Sign, truck, wall, door...' Eventually they agreed on Wyatt, which we can all agree is nice than, err, door.

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Arlo Day Parents – Leighton Meester and Adam Brody The TV show power couple Seth Cohen and Blair Waldorf (sorry) chose the adorable 'Arlo' for their first child.

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Apollo Bowie Flynn Parents – Gwen Stefani and Gavin RossdaleApollo's middle name is homage to David Bowie, though was done way before his death. Apollo may be homage to a space mission or the theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue, though they have yet to confirm.

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Apple Parents – Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin The classic unusual baby name. We all know Gwyneth enjoys food of the wholesome and healthy variety and she proved it when naming her first daughter. She said in an interview that she liked how it sounded 'wholesome' and 'clean'.

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Elsie Otter Parents – Zooey Deschanel and Jacob PechenikElsie Otter maybe the cutest name ever. Ever. EVER. It sounds like a character name from a children's book involving lots of woodland creatures.

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Future Zahir Parents – Ciara and Future This name might seem pretty out there but Ciara and former partner rapper Future were simply keeping it in the family.

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Blue Ivy Parents – Beyonce and Jay ZJay Z did once rap, 'my favourite hue is Jay Z blue…' Ivy derives from Roman numeral IV or four, which is Bey's birthday (4th Sep), Jay Z's birthday (4th Dec) and their anniversary date (4th April). May the forth be with you?

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Petal Blossom Rainbow Parents – Jamie and Jools OliverJamie said how he didn't realise his daughters is named after a My Little Pony, but admitted all his children have more than one name, because he can't decide. His other children's names are – Poppy Honey Rosie, Daisy Boo Pamela and Buddy Bear Maurice.

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Luna Simone Parents – John Legend and Chrissy TeigenChrissy asked the president Obama for advice before settling on a name. 'I asked him he like one of our name choices and he said he did. I wanted to ask him because John isn't sold on the name so I figured that if the president liked it, then John would be sold on it.'

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Buddy Bob Parents – Tom and Giovanna Fletcher The name of Ex-Mcfly's second-born derives from an English nickname.

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Kal-El Parents – Nicholas Cage and Alice KimThe original name of Superman FYI. The couple liked it because it is 'memorable' and 'sharp'. Arguably everything you need from a moniker.

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Silas Randall Parents – Justin Timberlake and Jessica BielSilas Randall reportedly derives from Justin's brother and grandad's name.

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Rex Rayne Parents – Fearne Cotton and Jesse Wood'Rex' is latin for king and with Ronnie Wood as a grandfather, he was always going to be called something unusual.

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Marlowe Ottoline Layng Parents -Sienna Miller and Tom SturridgeMarlowe is said to be chosen after the famous Elizabethan playwright Christopher Marlowe.

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Bing Hawn Parents – Kate Hudson and Matthew BellamyThe couple decided to combine their mothers maiden name and 'Bing Hawn' was born.

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Jermajesty Parents - Jermaine Jackson and Alejandra Genevieve OaziazaJermaine Jackson has combined his name with the oh-so modest term 'majesty' when naming his fourth child. Of course he has.

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Kulture KiaraParents - Cardi B and Offset.Culture, but with a K.

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Atlas NoaParents - Shay Mitchell and Matte Babel.The Pretty Little Liars star was obviously inspired by her love of travelling. She told Vogue that a friend gave her the name, though. 'A close friend of ours was listing off names for her daughter that she had had a year and a half ago. Then she said Atlas and I looked at Matte, and he looked at me, and I was like, 'Oh my gosh!''

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X Æ A-12 MuskParents - Grimes and Elon MuskElon has a habit of trolling, so we'll wait and see if the name sticks.

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Gene Attell FischerParents - Amy Schumer and Chris Fischer It turns out Amy Schumer was one of the last people to realise that her son's name sounded like genital. In tribute to the comedian David Attell, Amy and her husband Chris Fischer named their son Gene Attell Fischer. But now, the pair have changed the name, after they realised what 'Gene Attell' sounded like - and middle name Attell has now become David.

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Olympia Lightning BoltParents - Usain Bolt and Kasi BennettIn July, Olympic medallist Usain Bolt revealed the name of his baby girl to be Olympia Lightning Bolt, which is probably one of our favourite celebrity names ever.

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Ever Leo Parents - Lea Michele and Zandy ReichIn August, the pair confirmed to People that their son is called Ever Leo. And while it might be an unusual name, the Leo part of the name definitely makes sense, as the traditional Western zodiac associates Leo with the period between July 23 and August 22.

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WednesdayParents - Rupert Grint and Georgia GroomeThe Harry Potter star created an Instagram account in November to reveal the name of his baby daughter. 'Hey Instagram ... only 10 years late, but here I am. Grint on the Gram!' wrote the new dad. 'Here to introduce you all to Wednesday G. Grint. Stay safe, Rupert.'

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PhineasSpeaking about their second baby on The Ellen DeGeneres show, Justin Timberlake told the host, 'His name is Phineas, and he is awesome and so cute and nobody's sleeping but we are thrilled. We are thrilled and we couldn't be happier. We are grateful.' (Their first child, Silas, is now five.)

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