Baby names can be surprisingly good time capsules. For Generation X, born between 1965 and 1980, names like Jennifer, Michael, Lisa, and Jason became part of the soundtrack of growing up alongside cassette tapes, Saturday morning cartoons, and the first home computers. Others had already been popular for decades and simply refused to go anywhere.
The era also saw some dramatic changes in what parents were choosing. Jennifer went from #20 for girls in 1965 to dominating the #1 spot throughout the 1970s, while Christopher climbed from #18 for boys to become one of the country's most popular choices. At the same time, longtime favorites such as Mary began moving steadily down the rankings.
Stacker used baby name data from the Social Security Administration to look at the names given to children born during the Gen X years. The following list ranks the 25 most popular names for girls and boys based on the available data from 1965 through 1980, along with a look at when each name was at its strongest and how some of these Gen X staples are faring with parents today.
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1 / 50Once one of America's most familiar girls' names, Linda still ranked #8 when Generation X began. Its later decline was steep enough that today's modest birth numbers look almost unrecognizable beside its mid-century popularity.
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2 / 50Ryan barely registered at the start of Generation X, sitting at #221 in 1965 with just over a thousand babies given the name. It broke into the top 30 by the early 1970s and kept climbing from there, reaching its Gen X peak of #14 in 1978 and 1979.
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3 / 50Some of the clearest generational shifts can be seen in names that started strong and then quickly receded. Deborah fits that pattern, posting its best available Gen X ranking of #13 in 1965 before newer choices increasingly displaced it.
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4 / 50Few late-Gen X trends were as clear as the growing enthusiasm for Joshua. By 1980, the name had reached #7, and its continued presence among thousands of newborns shows that its appeal was hardly limited to one generation.
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5 / 50Starting Generation X inside the top 10 gave Cynthia an early advantage, but the landscape changed rapidly. Within several years, it had reached the bottom of the top 25, reflecting a broader move away from many mid-century favorites.
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6 / 50Rather than defining the beginning of the Gen X era, Andrew emerged as a stronger choice toward its end, reaching #19 in 1980. Its modern numbers tell a different story from many names here: it remains a familiar choice for today's parents.
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7 / 50Sarah spent the mid-1960s well outside the top 50, ranked #92 in 1965. From there, it climbed almost every year of Generation X, closing out the era at its peak of #5 in 1980.
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8 / 50Already well established when the first Gen X babies arrived, Paul was strongest at the beginning of the period. It gradually slipped toward the bottom of the top 25, but its early popularity still helped produce a sizable generation of Pauls.
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9 / 50Only five years separate Amanda's #14 ranking in 1975 from its remarkable rise to #2 in 1980. That rapid ascent made it one of the clearest examples of a name catching fire during the closing stretch of the Gen X era.
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10 / 50Anthony's Gen X performance is characterized by consistency rather than one huge spike. Even more notable is what happened afterward: the name remains #46 today, making it far more resilient than many of its generational contemporaries.
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11 / 50Christina cracked the top 25 for the first time in 1972 and climbed quickly from there, reaching its Gen X peak of #12 just three years later in 1975. It stayed in that neighborhood for the rest of the decade, even though the name is considerably less common among newborns today.
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12 / 50Eric's trajectory was initially upward: after sitting at #25 during the mid-1960s, it reached #13 and held that peak across several years. Its sustained mid-1970s success helped turn it into a familiar name for the generation.
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13 / 50At #6 in 1965, Patricia entered the Gen X era carrying considerable popularity from earlier decades. As naming tastes shifted, however, newer choices began replacing traditional favorites like Patricia near the top of the charts.
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14 / 50The first years of Generation X were Timothy's strongest, with consecutive #11 rankings in 1966 and 1967. Although it dropped into the 20s during the 1970s, the name accumulated a substantial total across the generation and remains in use today.
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15 / 50Still on the rise as Generation X drew to a close, Nicole reached #7 in 1980. The name would become closely associated with the late 20th century, though fewer than 1,000 newborn girls received it in 2025.
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16 / 50Most of Steven's strength came during the earlier Gen X years, with its best showing arriving in 1966. The name gradually lost ground over the following decade, yet its long presence in the rankings produced more than 300,000 Gen X Stevens in the available data.
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17 / 50Before becoming one of the signature names of the 1980s, Jessica was already surging during Generation X's final years. Reaching #3 in both 1978 and 1980 showed that an even bigger era for the name was just beginning.
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18 / 50The early 1970s represented Scott's high-water mark, including a #10 finish in 1971. Its subsequent slide was considerable, and the relatively small number of babies receiving the name today reflects how closely its popularity is tied to earlier generations.
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19 / 50Susan reached #5 during the 1960s (1965 and 1967 both), then spent the rest of Generation X in steady retreat, closing out 1980 at #62 (a rapid decline for a name that had been ubiquitous only a few years earlier).
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20 / 50A fall from #9 in 1965 to #25 in 1980 might suggest a name on its way out, but Thomas proved much more durable. Today it sits at #33, giving this classic one of the strongest modern performances among the names on the list.
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21 / 50Rebecca spent the back half of the 1960s stuck in the 30s and 40s, as low as #41 in 1965. The early 1970s changed that fast: within a few years it broke into the top 10, reaching its Gen X peak of #10 in both 1973 and 1974.
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22 / 50Rather than peaking once and disappearing, Kevin repeatedly returned to #13 across different parts of the Gen X era. That unusual consistency kept it prominent for years, although by 1980 it had begun slipping down the rankings.
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23 / 50Julie entered the era already well-established at #14 in 1965, then climbed even higher, reaching its Gen X peak of #10 in 1971. As newer favorites took over, its position steadily weakened for the rest of the decade, closing out 1980 at #32 and continuing to fade in the decades since.
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24 / 50What began as a growing 1970s favorite developed into something much more enduring. Matthew had reached #6 by 1980 and, unlike many names tied to Gen X, continues to rank prominently among boys born today.
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25 / 50Laura improved through the back half of the 1960s, reaching its Gen X peak of #10 in 1969, before gradually giving ground to finish the era around #21 — a comparatively steady path that helped make it a recurring presence rather than a short-lived naming craze.
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26 / 50Four consecutive years at #7 gave Mark a remarkably strong start to the Gen X period. By 1977, however, it had fallen to #25, illustrating the gradual turnover from established mid-century choices to the emerging favorites of the 1970s.
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27 / 50Long before its later pop-culture associations, Karen was a naming powerhouse. A #3 ranking in 1965 shows just how common it was among early Gen X girls, while its much smaller modern numbers reveal an extraordinary generational shift.
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28 / 50Long-established names still held considerable influence in the mid-1960s, and Richard's #8 ranking in 1965 is a clear example. Its prominence diminished as Gen X progressed, but it remained a recognizable part of the generation's naming landscape.
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29 / 50Stephanie cracked the top 25 in 1967 and climbed steadily from there, reaching its Gen X peak of #8 in 1972. It cooled off gradually after that, but was still a top-15 name as the decade closed, before its use fell substantially in the decades since.
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30 / 50Stability was one of Daniel's greatest strengths during the Gen X years — a long run in the #10-#11 range that peaked at #10 in 1976. That staying power has continued for decades: it now ranks #22 and remains one of the most widely used names represented here.
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31 / 50While many established girls' names were declining, Elizabeth held remarkably steady — dipping no worse than #19 in 1971 — before closing out the era at its Gen X peak of #9 in 1980. It remains exceptionally strong today at #17.
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32 / 50Joseph's Gen X rankings moved more than most of his top-10 peers, from a best of #10 — reached repeatedly between 1977 and 1980 — down to #16 in 1968 and 1970. Even so, that range kept him solidly in the top 20 throughout, a steadiness that carried forward well beyond the period, with Joseph still sitting comfortably among today's leading boys' names.
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33 / 50A top-three ranking in 1975 made Heather one of the defining girls' choices of the decade. Its later disappearance from the top 1,000 makes that former popularity especially striking from a modern perspective.
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34 / 50The 1970s belonged to Brian far more than the mid-1960s did. After beginning at #19, it rose to #8 and returned to that position repeatedly, giving it an extended period of popularity rather than a single standout year.
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35 / 50No small change separates Mary's position at the two ends of the Gen X era. The longtime American favorite fell from #2 in 1965 to #24 by the late 1970s, marking a dramatic departure from the dominance it had enjoyed for generations.
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36 / 50Generational trends have done surprisingly little to diminish William's appeal. Although it moved from #6 to #14 during the Gen X years, the classic name has since climbed back near the very top and ranks #9 today.
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37 / 50Midway through the 1970s, Angela reached its Gen X high point at #5. It remained a strong choice through the end of the period, though its popularity among today's babies is only a small fraction of what it once was.
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38 / 50For much of the 1970s, only one boy's name stood between Jason and the top spot. Spending several years at #2 gave it an enormous Gen X presence, while its lower current ranking highlights just how concentrated that popularity was.
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39 / 50At its mid-1970s height, Amy came within one spot of being the country's most popular girls' name. Its short, simple sound became particularly emblematic of the era, even as its ranking eventually retreated from those heights.
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40 / 50From #18 to #2, Christopher made one of the biggest upward moves on the boys' side of the list. By the late 1970s, it had become a dominant choice, and thousands of parents continue to choose it more than four decades later.
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41 / 50Near the end of the 1970s, Melissa was everywhere. Back-to-back years at #2 placed it among the period's biggest girls' names, creating a sharp contrast with its much more modest use among today's newborns.
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42 / 50Even at its lowest point in the available Gen X data, Robert was still a top-10 name. That narrow #5-to-#9 range underscores just how consistently parents chose this traditional favorite throughout the generation.
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43 / 50Early Gen X parents embraced Kimberly in huge numbers, pushing it to #2 in consecutive years. It gradually moved down the list afterward, dipping to #13 by 1978 before ticking back up slightly to #11 as the era closed.
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44 / 50Remaining in the top 10 for an entire generation is an achievement few names can claim. John did exactly that in the available data, and its current #23 ranking shows that its centuries-old appeal remains remarkably intact.
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45 / 50A rapid late-1960s surge transformed Michelle from the #18 girls' name into the country's #2 choice. That dramatic rise gave the name a particularly strong Gen X identity, despite its much lower position today.
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46 / 50Whether looking at Generation X or babies born today, James barely seems to go out of fashion. Its available rankings never fell below #5 during the era, and more than four decades later it sits at #6.
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47 / 50For four straight years at the beginning of Generation X, Lisa occupied the #1 spot. Its fall to #16 by 1980 was substantial, but that early dominance was enough to make it one of the names most strongly associated with the generation.
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48 / 50There was remarkably little variation in David's standing throughout the period. Even its lowest available position was #5, and the name's current #35 ranking confirms that its appeal survived long after the Gen X years ended.
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49 / 50Nothing on the girls' side quite compares with Jennifer's Gen X takeover. After sitting at #20 in 1965, it reached #1 by 1970 and stayed there through 1980, an 11-year run that made the name virtually synonymous with the generation.
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50 / 50Sixteen years, one ranking: Michael held the #1 position for the entire Gen X period covered by the data. Even more impressive is its longevity, as the era's dominant boys' name still ranks #21 among newborns in 2025.
