Between 2011 and 2018, babies named Khaleesi and US hummus market revenue both grew, correlating at 0.9635 across eight data points. The theory that Game of Thrones fans eat disproportionate amounts of chickpea dip has not been formally studied, but the cultural overlap is considerable: both Khaleesi and hummus entered mainstream American consciousness during the same decade, championed by the same urban, culturally omnivorous demographic that adopts foreign words and fermented legumes with equal enthusiasm. The correlation ended when Game of Thrones did, which tells you everything about the durability of TV-inspired baby names and nothing about hummus.
The name Khaleesi appeared in US baby name records starting in 2011, the year Game of Thrones premiered, and grew through the show's peak years. Hummus revenue grew from roughly $500 million to over $900 million, driven by health-conscious snacking and Mediterranean diet popularity. Both are cultural adoption curves that grew during the same window, one driven by television and the other by food trends, peaking around the same time as the cultural moments that drove them ran their course.
A TV-inspired baby name and a food trend will correlate across any shared growth window when both are adopted by the same cultural moment. The correlation is measuring the 2010s, not a relationship between fantasy television and chickpeas.
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Want to learn more about why correlations like “Babies named Khaleesi” vs “US hummus market revenue” don't prove causation? Read our guide to statistical thinking.
