The 1961 Baby Name Report

4,142,301 babies, 11,012 unique names — the risers, fallers, and brand-new arrivals of 1961

👑 #1 girls: Mary (9 years running) 👑 #1 boys: Michael 469 debuts

Top girls

  1. Mary47,688
  2. Lisa42,719
  3. Susan37,530
  4. Linda35,592
  5. Karen34,697
  6. Patricia28,889
  7. Donna28,674
  8. Cynthia24,389
  9. Sandra24,154
  10. Deborah24,105

Top boys

  1. Michael86,968
  2. David84,805
  3. John79,973
  4. James75,959
  5. Robert72,963
  6. Mark57,786
  7. William48,035
  8. Richard41,140
  9. Thomas37,568
  10. Steven32,273

Full top-50 rankings for 1961 →

🚀 Fastest risers

  1. Velvet #1,292 → #542 (+750)
  2. Johnna #1,044 → #442 (+602)
  3. Corina #1,087 → #621 (+466)
  4. Kara #910 → #554 (+356)
  5. Jacquline #783 → #534 (+249)
  6. Paige #745 → #526 (+219)
  7. Angel #613 → #395 (+218)
  8. Daphne #572 → #371 (+201)
  9. Liza #912 → #719 (+193)
  10. Danielle #552 → #373 (+179)

📉 Biggest fallers

  1. Deb #718 → #900 (−182)
  2. Earnestine #700 → #849 (−149)
  3. Bambi #637 → #783 (−146)
  4. Melodie #554 → #692 (−138)
  5. Debbi #678 → #816 (−138)
  6. Debi #509 → #645 (−136)
  7. Ivy #604 → #717 (−113)
  8. Marina #525 → #630 (−105)
  9. Tamie #644 → #747 (−103)
  10. Ava #532 → #631 (−99)

✨ Never recorded before 1961

Lavoris (37) Tarita (29) Korina (22) Kiz (21) Shirelle (21) Jefre (21) Amby (18) Shurla (17) Coreena (16) Corrinna (15)

469 names appeared in SSA records for the first time ever in 1961.

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What were the most popular baby names in 1961?
Mary was the #1 girl name and Michael the #1 boy name in 1961, out of 4,142,301 recorded births.
What baby name rose fastest in 1961?
Velvet made the biggest jump in 1961, climbing 750 spots to #542.
How many new baby names appeared in 1961?
469 names were recorded by the SSA for the first time ever in 1961.