Decade dossier
1950s baby names
The names that defined the 1950s: James and Mary led the decade, but the full roster tells a richer story.
A 1950s classroom probably included Mary, Linda, James, Michael. Some became durable classics; others now read like timestamps.
Girls
- #1Mary625,606
- #2Linda564,364
- #3Patricia459,681
- #4Susan437,774
- #5Deborah430,537
- #6Barbara345,722
- #7Debra341,348
- #8Karen332,531
- #9Nancy286,812
- #10Donna270,338
- #11Cynthia263,432
- #12Sandra251,591
- #13Pamela237,398
- #14Sharon232,807
- #15Kathleen224,342
- #16Carol222,656
- #17Diane210,624
- #18Brenda209,241
- #19Cheryl171,387
- #20Janet167,520
- #21Elizabeth165,656
- #22Kathy157,930
- #23Margaret149,582
- #24Janice133,620
- #25Carolyn124,067
Boys
- #1James843,768
- #2Michael837,471
- #3Robert830,395
- #4John797,922
- #5David769,963
- #6William591,228
- #7Richard535,461
- #8Thomas454,385
- #9Mark382,589
- #10Charles361,177
- #11Steven333,666
- #12Gary329,933
- #13Joseph300,012
- #14Donald273,574
- #15Ronald271,139
- #16Kenneth262,819
- #17Paul253,202
- #18Larry245,698
- #19Daniel243,727
- #20Stephen207,276
- #21Dennis204,267
- #22Timothy198,324
- #23Edward188,323
- #24Jeffrey184,668
- #25George181,031