Baby boomer baby names that have gone out of style
Some names seem so ubiquitous that it is hard to imagine they will ever be anything other than everywhere in the popular consciousness. However, a look at the history of popular names shows such enduring popularity is far from given.
When the parents of the baby boomer generation came back from World War II, an array of social factors influenced the names they would give their children, including the names of beloved presidents and popular actors. From models to actors to singer-songwriters, many of the most famous baby boomers had the most popular names of their day, from Jerry Hall to Bob Dylan to Pat Benatar.
However, for some names, in the time between the boomer years and now, other figures have emerged with the same names that caused these monikers to lose their luster. An unpopular television show character, a kidnapper, a murderer, another unsavory character, or simply a dramatic downturn in fortune on the public stage can all contribute to a name losing its popularity. President Richard Nixon, for example, was famously called "Tricky Dicky" for his crimes in office, making the name Dick far less appealing to parents.
To determine which baby boomer names have since lost popularity, Stacker consulted the Social Security Administration's baby names database. We compiled a list of 974 names given to at least 5,000 baby boomers (or, using the Pew Research Center's definition, babies born between 1946 and 1964). We then selected 25 girls' names and 25 boys' names from this list that were given to fewer than 75 babies born in 2021 (data released in 2022).
The names are ranked in this story according to their popularity among baby boomers, or the total number of babies given these names between 1946 and 1964. Many names that have gone out of style are considered gender-neutral, though the Social Security Administration considers sex and gender binary variables, using only male and female designations.
Click through to look at the 50 popular boomer names that have now gone out of style.
