The popular Mexican telenovela Llena de amor (translation: Full of Love) originally aired from May of 2010 to February of 2011.
It was a remake of the Venezuelan telenovela Mi gorda bella, which had, in turn, been inspired by the Colombian telenovela Yo soy Betty, la fea — the show that gave rise to the U.S. series Ugly Betty and dozens of other international adaptations.
Llena de amor‘s main character — a young, overweight woman named Marianela (played by Ariadne Díaz) — seems to have given the baby name Marianela a slight boost in 2011.
But two other characters — both antagonists, interestingly — had a much more conspicuous influence on U.S. baby names.
The first, named Ilitia, was played by Altaír Jarabo. The rare name Ilitia (pronounced ee-LEE-tee-ah) appeared for the first (and, so far, only) time in the data in 2011:
- 2013: unlisted
- 2012: unlisted
- 2011: 11 baby girls named Ilitia [debut]
- 2010: unlisted
- 2009: unlisted
The second, named Kristel, was played by María Elisa Camargo. The name Kristel nearly quadrupled in usage in 2011:
- 2013: 27 baby girls named Kristel
- 2012: 47 baby girls named Kristel
- 2011: 122 baby girls named Kristel
- 2010: 32 baby girls named Kristel
- 2009: 23 baby girls named Kristel
More than half of Kristel’s 2011 usage occurred specifically in the states of California and Texas, both of which have sizeable Spanish-speaking populations.
Which do of these names — Marianela, Ilitia, or Kristel — do you like the most? Why?
Sources: Llena de amor – Wikipedia, Llena de amor: Cast of characters – Caray! Caray!, SSA
Images: Screenshots of Llena de amor
