The Bronte sisters have inspired artists and writers for 150 years and now, according to the latest research, they have influenced parents looking for that special name for their newborn.

Bronte is moving up the popularity stakes for baby girls. So says Bounty, a parenting club which produces guides for new mums and dads.

It says during the last couple of years, 51 girls have been given Bronte as a first name which makes it about 1,500th in popularity nationwide.

Although its use is edging up very slowly it may not be good news for 26-year-old nanny Bronte Gruszka, of Ackworth Drive, Rawdon, who revels in the rarity of her Christian name.

She said: "I love my name - I love having an unusual name and I can't imagine having a more common one.

"I've only known one Bronte before and I was quite put out when I heard she had the same name.

"An unusual name gives you individuality and I think Bronte reflects my personality. I like to think of myself as sophisticated, fun-loving and full of life."

Bronte, who is also a fan of the novels of Anne, Emily and Charlotte, added: "I get questioned about it. People ask where it came from.

"I've been to the Parsonage Museum and Haworth and I've read the books.

"I like Wuthering Heights but my favourite is Jane Eyre - it is the only one that has really made me cry."

Over the years, the Bronte guardians at the Parsonage in Haworth, have recorded visits by people with Bronte as their second name, often claiming links with the literary family.

And Brontes from Ireland related to Patrick Bronte, the sisters' father, have visited in recent years, said librarian Ann Dinsdale.

But she cannot recall anyone with the first name Bronte.

"That is unusual. The first Bronte we know named after the family was Bronte Greenwood and he was a boy.

"It happened in the lifetime of Patrick Bronte and the child was the son of the local stationer who supplied the sisters with their writing paper.

"It also followed the publication of Mrs Gaskell's Life of Charlotte Bronte when the secret was out about the sisters and everyone knew who had written the novels. They had originally published under pseudonyms," said Mrs Dinsdale.

But the biggest impact on first names came after the publication of Charlotte's novel Shirley.

"It was a boy's name before then. In the book, the heroine was given a boy's name because her parents were so disappointed that their first born was a girl.

"From 1849, when it was published, people started calling their girls Shirley," she added.

According to the Bounty list, Bronte is still a very unusual name and way off reaching the top 100 names.

Of the 380,000 names polled so far this year, Jack for boys and Jessica for girls lead the way.

The Bounty list includes Kofi, possibly after the UN secretary general Kofi Annan, Spike possibly after Spike Milligan, Clementine, Cadence and Luna.

Blade was chosen by a number of parents, perhaps in homage to the vampire-fighting feature film character by Wesley Snipes.

Simon Williamson, Bounty managing director, said more than 90 per cent of parents still chose from the top 100 popular names.

"It's not surprising that Jack and Jessica are the top names for boys and girls so far this year reflecting the fact traditional names have an enduring appeal."

e-mail: clive.white@bradford.newsquest.co.uk