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People actually named their baby after KFC's Colonel Sanders for $11K

Well, that's one way to get a jump-start on college savings.
Colonel Harland Sanders, Harland Rose
Colonel Harland Sanders, Harland RoseGetty Images, @kfc/Twitter
/ Source: TODAY

Choosing a baby name is one of the first major decisions parents make for their child. It usually involves careful consideration and sometimes a bunch of family politics come into play.

But money was the driving force that inspired the parents of a baby girl to name her after KFC's Colonel Sanders.

In August, the Southern chicken chain offered its followers an opportunity to win its Baby Harland Naming Contest for a grand prize of $11,000 towards college tuition. To enter, parents had to name their son or daughter Harland and only qualified if the baby was born on Sept. 9 (the Colonel's birthday was Sept. 9, 1890).

On Tuesday, KFC shared a photo of the adorable little girl that won the contest via Twitter.

Don't worry, her parents did not name her The Colonel. She was, however, named Harland, after Kentucky Fried Chicken's founding father, Colonel Harland Sanders.

That's right, she's a little girl Colonel — just like Reba McEntire.

When the contest was first posted, tweeters had mixed reactions.

Some thought it was terrible to name a child for money and publicity, regardless of how pretty the name may be.

And many people wrote about how they had a child named Harland, were named Harland themselves or would even change their name to Harland for the right price.

On Tuesday, when KFC released its official announcement about the tiny person who will lead generations of chicken-loving entrepreneurs to come, tweeters continued to disagree on whether this was cause for celebration ... or just plain wrong.

Some felt sorry for the little girl who will forever have to explain her namesake (or maybe just avoid the topic altogether).

One tweeter praised Colonel Sanders as a success and said having such a lovely name would be an honor.

Another was quick to respond that he won't be naming his baby "Microsoft" just because of the company's success.

Harland Rose was born on Sept. 9. She weighed 8 pounds, 1 ounce and was 21 inches long. She, no doubt, got the Colonel's stamp of approval (although the original Harland passed away in 1980). And, according to the Louisville Courier Journal, she will be nicknamed Harley.