These Were The Most Popular Baby Names In The 1950s

Baby name trends are an evolving part of our culture. The Social Security Administration tracks these fascinating trends over time, keeping a list of the most popular names every year since the 1880s.

The SSA also shares lists of the top names for each decade. We decided to take a look at the most popular names of the 1950s.

As tends to be the case, the names for boys are a bit more timeless ― Michael, James and William are still on the top 10 list today. Meanwhile, you don’t meet too many newborn baby girls named Donna, Linda or Barbara these days.

Without further ado, here are the 50 most popular names for boys and girls born in the U.S. from 1950 to 1959.

Girls

1. Mary
2. Linda
3. Patricia
4. Susan
5. Deborah
6. Barbara
7. Debra
8. Karen
9. Nancy
10. Donna
11. Cynthia
12. Sandra
13. Pamela
14. Sharon
15. Kathleen
16. Carol
17. Diane
18. Brenda
19. Cheryl
20. Janet
21. Elizabeth
22. Kathy
23. Margaret
24. Janice
25. Carolyn
26. Denise
27. Judy
28. Rebecca
29. Joyce
30. Teresa
31. Christine
32. Catherine
33. Shirley
34. Judith
35. Betty
36. Beverly
37. Lisa
38. Laura
39. Theresa
40. Connie
41. Ann
42. Julie
43. Gloria
44. Gail
45. Joan
46. Paula
47. Peggy
48. Cindy
49. Martha
50. Bonnie

Boys

1. James
2. Michael
3. Robert
4. John
5. David
6. William
7. Richard
8. Thomas
9. Mark
10. Charles
11. Steven
12. Gary
13. Joseph
14. Donald
15. Ronald
16. Kenneth
17. Paul
18. Larry
19. Daniel
20. Stephen
21. Dennis
22. Timothy
23. Edward
24. Jeffrey
25. George
26. Gregory
27. Kevin
28. Douglas
29. Terry
30. Anthony
31. Jerry
32. Bruce
33. Randy
34. Brian
35. Frank
36. Scott
37. Roger
38. Raymond
39. Peter
40. Patrick
41. Keith
42. Lawrence
43. Wayne
44. Danny
45. Alan
46. Gerald
47. Ricky
48. Carl
49. Christopher
50. Dale