These Were The Most Popular Baby Names In 1974

The Social Security Administration's data shows what parents were naming their newborns half a century ago.
While many top choices in 1974 remain popular today, others have fallen significantly down the ranking
Allen Donikowski via Getty Images
While many top choices in 1974 remain popular today, others have fallen significantly down the ranking

The list of the most popular baby names in the U.S. doesn’t change dramatically from one year to the next, but if you look back over longer periods of time, some interesting shifts emerge.

Thankfully, the Social Security Administration’s baby names database shows parents’ top picks going back to the 1880s, so it’s easy to compare trends of the past to what’s in fashion today. We took a look at the most popular names exactly 50 years ago.

While many top choices in 1974 remain popular today (think classics like James, Michael and Elizabeth), others have fallen significantly down the ranking (a la Lisa, Dawn, Todd and Keith.)

Below, find the 50 most popular baby names for boys and girls born in 1974.

Girls

  1. Jennifer
  2. Amy
  3. Michelle
  4. Heather
  5. Angela
  6. Kimberly
  7. Melissa
  8. Lisa
  9. Stephanie
  10. Rebecca
  11. Nicole
  12. Elizabeth
  13. Mary
  14. Julie
  15. Kelly
  16. Christina
  17. Jessica
  18. Shannon
  19. Christine
  20. Sarah
  21. Laura
  22. Dawn
  23. Tracy
  24. Tammy
  25. Tina
  26. Karen
  27. Susan
  28. April
  29. Patricia
  30. Lori
  31. Maria
  32. Wendy
  33. Cynthia
  34. Amanda
  35. Andrea
  36. Rachel
  37. Tonya
  38. Stacy
  39. Tara
  40. Danielle
  41. Tiffany
  42. Carrie
  43. Monica
  44. Sandra
  45. Kristen
  46. Tanya
  47. Erin
  48. Stacey
  49. Crystal
  50. Michele

Boys

  1. Michael
  2. Jason
  3. Christopher
  4. David
  5. James
  6. John
  7. Robert
  8. Brian
  9. Matthew
  10. William
  11. Daniel
  12. Joseph
  13. Eric
  14. Kevin
  15. Jeffrey
  16. Mark
  17. Richard
  18. Scott
  19. Steven
  20. Thomas
  21. Anthony
  22. Timothy
  23. Charles
  24. Jeremy
  25. Ryan
  26. Chad
  27. Paul
  28. Andrew
  29. Joshua
  30. Shawn
  31. Gregory
  32. Aaron
  33. Jonathan
  34. Kenneth
  35. Stephen
  36. Adam
  37. Sean
  38. Patrick
  39. Todd
  40. Edward
  41. Donald
  42. Ronald
  43. Justin
  44. Keith
  45. Bryan
  46. Benjamin
  47. Jose
  48. Gary
  49. George
  50. Peter
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