Did Grimes and Elon Musk really name their son X Æ A-12, or is it all a ruse and the baby is really named Jason or something? For now, given that both Musk and Grimes have confirmed the X Æ A-12 name on Twitter, we will assume it’s really the child’s name, God help him. And now we know what it means.

In a tweet tonight, Grimes has explained the various components that went into sweet little X Æ A-12’s name. They’ve put a lot of thought into this! X, obviously, refers to “the unknown variable.” Æ is “my elven spelling of Ai (love &/or Artificial intelligence),” though as many have pointed out, Æ can be pronounced “ash” as well. A-12 is a shout-out to the Lockheed A-12 aircraft, “precursor to SR-17 (our favorite aircraft). No weapons, no defenses, just speed. Great in battle, but non-violent.” The A in A-12 is short for “Archangel,” which Grimes says is her favorite song. (I’d like to believe she means the “Archangel” on Burial’s Untrue, but really there are lots of options here.) Confusingly, c also included swords and rat emojis at the end of her explainer along with the phrase “metal rat.” So who even knows.

Well, Grimes and Elon Musk know, I guess. Best of luck to this kid!

UPDATE: OK, so the “metal rat” thing is a reference to this year in the Chinese Zodiac. Thanks to this kind Twitter friend for the info.

•X, the unknown variable ⚔️
•Æ, my elven spelling of Ai (love &/or Artificial intelligence)
•A-12 = precursor to SR-17 (our favorite aircraft). No weapons, no defenses, just speed. Great in battle, but non-violent
+
(A=Archangel, my favorite song)
(⚔️ metal rat)

— ꧁ ༒ Gℜiꪔ⃕es ༒꧂ 小仙女 (@Grimezsz) May 6, 2020