The 10 most popular baby names per year since 1880

Steven has Greek and Latin roots, tracing back to the word “stephanos,” meaning “crown.” The variation Stephen is also quite popular. Not all Brians have the fortune of being mistaken for the Messiah, but they do share the history that comes with the name. Brian likely comes from Irish roots, and the famous Irish high king of the 10th century was called Brian Boru. No matter how arbitrary, our given names resonate as significant components of our identities.

• Early popularity of Alexander can almost certainly be traced back to Alexander the Great, the Macedonian ruler who established one of the largest empires of the ancient world.
• Even researchers who have studied name trends say there’s no sufficient way to predict what names will dominate over time .
• From a starting position of No. 18 in 1880, it climbed to an all-time high of No. 2 in 1968.
• Among the most famous Kenneths today are Kenny Chesney and Kenny Rogers, who died in 2020.

Of course, it goes back way further than 100 years with its Roman roots. Although it was originally a short form of Elizabeth, Betty held its own as one of the most popular girl’s names in the 1930s. From Mary to Mason and John to Olivia, here’s our list of the top 50 most popular baby names from the last 100 years. With boy names, James and William managed to hover in the same spots over the last century. In 1920, Robert, John, Charles, George, Joseph, Richard, Edward and Donald also took the top spots. The list of the top 10 baby girl names in the 1920s listed Mary, Dorothy, Helen, Betty, Margaret, Ruth, Virginia, Doris, Mildred and Frances.

Names that Ruled the Century: #1 Baby Names of the Last 100 Years

Family Education is part of the Sandbox Learning family of educational reference sites for parents, teachers, and students. Jack and Emma were the most popular first names in Northern Ireland in 2003. An equally popular choice in https://business-accounting.net/ Australia and New Zealand, it may owe some of its revival to reality star Kourtney Kardashian, who chose it for her son in 2009. Meaning “people of victory,” it shares origins with Nike, the name of the Greek goddess of victory.

David is less popular today but still gets plenty of love, ranked at No. 22 in 2018. Hugely popular from the 1940s to the 1960s, Patricia, meaning “noble, patrician,” has roots in royalty. Queen Victoria’s granddaughter, Princess of Connaught, was christened Patricia — although she went by the nickname Patsy. Other names that made the Top 10 list include Sophia, Isabella, Mia, Evelyn, and Harper. This gentle vintage choice has the same soft yet sturdy sound as names like Lawrence, Wallace and Ambrose, all of which are now starting to be rediscovered by American parents. Another jazz-inspired name, and this one comes with the cool nickname Chet. Tom Hanks has a son named Chester, as does British TV presenter Holly Willoughby – it’s a Top 100 choice across the pond.

Emma Waterhouse

The popularity of the name Virginia may be linked to the state’s crucial role in American history. When the English began colonizing North America in the late 16th century, Virginia covered more area than the state’s modern boundaries and was named such in honor of “The Virgin Queen,” Elizabeth I of England. Perhaps the multitude of famous Jerrys, from Seinfeld to a certain mischievous mouse, have contributed to the popularity of this beloved name. Jerry has somewhat fallen from grace—there were more than 17,000 baby Jerrys in 1943 and just 488 in 2017. Jeffrey, or Jeff for short, comes in at number 29 on the list and is the first one not to break the 1 million mark.

Emily took the top spot for girl’s names in 1996 and enjoyed an 11-year reign. Meaning “rival,” it has no shortage of appealing namesakes, from literary greats Emily Bronte and Emily Dickinson to Hollywood actors Emily Watson and Emily Blunt. One thing’s for certain – we don’t know which names will be popular tomorrow. Even researchers who have studied name trends say there’s no sufficient way to predict what names will dominate over time . The names listed in the following tables, unless otherwise noted, represent the most current top 10 breakdowns of what newborn children are commonly being named in the various regions of the world.

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If you give your little one this name and he ends up being a tough little fighter, don’t say you weren’t warned. Coming in at number two is Robert, which really isn’t all that surprising. It’s a solid choice for both a first or middle name, and it has some decent nicknames like Rob, Robbie, and Bob.

Some of the most famous Richards in the last half-century include Richard Nixon, Richard Attenborough, and Richard Gere. Throughout the late 1950s and 1960s, Karen was one of the most popular girls’ names in the country. Somewhere along the way, however, the name became a running joke, and the internet became peppered with Karen-centric memes. One half of the duo famous for fighting over a well-known redhead (a pair that has since been given a modern twist via the TV series “Riverdale”), Betty saw a long reign as a popular name for girls. Betty was even used as slang (as seen in the movie “Clueless”) to mean a beautiful woman.

#3. Robert (boys)

Originally an English surname (a variant of Mathieson, meaning “son of Matthew”), Madison was the second most popular girl’s name of the 2000s. One of its first outings as a female first name was in the 1984 movie “Splash,” in which the mermaid played by Daryl Hannah takes her name from the Madison Avenue street sign in Top Names Over the Last 100 Years New York City. Nicholas has never reached the No. 1 spot on the boy’s name chart, but it was the sixth most popular name of the 1990s, and has stayed well within the top 100 since then. A girl’s name of Hebrew origin meaning “princess,” Sarah entered the top 10 in the late 1970s and stayed there for more than 20 years.