Zion has taken off in recent years, especially after singer Lauryn Hill used it for her son in 1997. It combines a user-friendly Ryan-Brian sound with the gravitas of religious significance. The Hebrew pronunciation is 'tziyon'.

In the Old Testament, the name Zion frequently refers to the city of Jerusalem as a whole, and came to be symbolic of Jewish national aspirations, and thus was the source of the term Zionism.

Basketball star Dwayne Wade and model Isabel Fontana also named their sons Zion, and reality star Fantasia Barrino bestowed it on her daughter.

Zion now stands at Number 245 for boys--representing almost 1,500 baby Zions born in 2010--and at number 690 for girls.