The 1950s Baby Name Report

39,451,610 babies, 17,018 unique names — the risers, fallers, and brand-new arrivals of the 1950s

1950 1951 1952 1953 1954 1955 1956 1957 1958 1959
👑 #1 girls: Mary 👑 #1 boys: James 3,709 debuts

Top girls

  1. Mary625,609
  2. Linda564,363
  3. Patricia459,686
  4. Susan437,773
  5. Deborah430,541
  6. Barbara345,723
  7. Debra341,347
  8. Karen332,533
  9. Nancy286,812
  10. Donna270,333

Top boys

  1. James843,776
  2. Michael837,466
  3. Robert830,391
  4. John797,917
  5. David769,951
  6. William591,226
  7. Richard535,453
  8. Thomas454,385
  9. Mark382,585
  10. Charles361,178

Full top-50 rankings for the 1950s →

🚀 Fastest risers

  1. Kelli #6,190 → #667 (+5,523)
  2. Leisa #6,382 → #896 (+5,486)
  3. Traci #5,289 → #924 (+4,365)
  4. Sabrina #4,764 → #400 (+4,364)
  5. Migdalia #5,246 → #918 (+4,328)
  6. Kimberlee #4,663 → #635 (+4,028)
  7. Alisa #4,679 → #678 (+4,001)
  8. Kerri #4,633 → #768 (+3,865)
  9. Leesa #4,779 → #932 (+3,847)
  10. Marisa #4,696 → #851 (+3,845)

📉 Biggest fallers

  1. Melvyn #516 → #1,486 (−970)
  2. Bertie #792 → #1,586 (−794)
  3. Jeraldine #720 → #1,379 (−659)
  4. Olive #645 → #1,291 (−646)
  5. Arline #563 → #1,207 (−644)
  6. Annabelle #688 → #1,328 (−640)
  7. Judie #446 → #1,080 (−634)
  8. Carrol #612 → #1,230 (−618)
  9. Ardith #726 → #1,340 (−614)
  10. Nannie #649 → #1,259 (−610)

✨ Never recorded before the 1950s

Tammi (1100) Deb (771) Faron (669) Taryn (612) Broderick (594) Darcel (516) Tab (420) Spring (402) Vannessa (375) Kym (359)

3,709 names appeared in SSA records for the first time ever in the 1950s.

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What were the most popular baby names in the 1950s?
Mary was the #1 girl name and James the #1 boy name in the 1950s, out of 39,451,610 recorded births.
What baby name rose fastest in the 1950s?
Kelli made the biggest jump in the 1950s, climbing 5,523 spots to #667.
How many new baby names appeared in the 1950s?
3,709 names were recorded by the SSA for the first time ever in the 1950s.