1950s Baby Names

5,155 names were given to children in the United States between 1950 and 1959, ranked below by how many.

A name's place is its total across those ten years. Names that appear in only some of the decade say so, because a name recorded once is a different fact from one recorded every year.

All Girls Boys Unisex

Rankings for

#107
Christopher Christopher is a boy's name of Greek origin meaning "bearer of Christ," from Christos and pherein, to carry.
78,655 in the 1950s
#114
Walter Walter is a boy's name from Germanic elements meaning ruler of the army.
72,529 in the 1950s
#118
Craig Craig is a boy's name from the Gaelic word for a rock or crag, and one of the few names that is a plain landscape noun rather than a compound.
69,642 in the 1950s
#122
Johnny Johnny is a boy's name, the pet form of John, meaning God is gracious.
66,415 in the 1950s
#123
Arthur Arthur is a boy's name of disputed origin.
66,028 in the 1950s
#124
Joe Joe is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "he will add," a short form of Joseph that has become the English word for an ordinary person.
64,464 in the 1950s
#126
Steve Steve is a boy's name, the short form of Steven or Stephen, meaning crown or garland.
64,417 in the 1950s
#129
Randall Randall is a boy's name from Germanic elements meaning shield-wolf.
62,669 in the 1950s
#131
Henry Henry is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "home ruler," from heim, meaning home or estate, and ric, meaning ruler or power.
62,591 in the 1950s
#132
Russell Russell is a boy's name from a Norman nickname meaning little red, given to someone red-haired or ruddy.
62,589 in the 1950s
#133
Jack Jack is a boy's name of English origin that began as a pet form of John, by way of the medieval nickname Jankin.
62,535 in the 1950s
#134
Harold Harold is a boy's name from Norse and Old English elements meaning army ruler, and it belongs to the last Anglo-Saxon king of England, killed at Hastings in 1066.
62,406 in the 1950s
#135
Roy Roy is a boy's name with two independent sources — the Gaelic ruadh, meaning red-haired, and the French roi, meaning king.
62,182 in the 1950s
#137
Andrew Andrew is a boy's name of Greek origin meaning "manly" or "brave," from andreios, from aner, a man.
61,181 in the 1950s
#138
Philip Philip is a boy's name from Greek elements meaning lover of horses.
60,952 in the 1950s
#139
Ralph Ralph is a boy's name of Norse origin meaning "wolf counsel."
60,625 in the 1950s
#143
Billy Billy is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "resolute protector."
59,760 in the 1950s
#144
Glenn Glenn is a boy's name from the Gaelic word for a narrow valley, and like Craig and Dale it is a plain landscape noun.
58,996 in the 1950s
#147
Stanley Stanley is a boy's name of Old English origin meaning "stony clearing."
57,366 in the 1950s
#151
Jimmy Jimmy is a boy's name, the pet form of James, meaning supplanter.
55,237 in the 1950s
#152
Barry Barry is a boy's name from an Irish surname generally traced to a word for a spear, though a Welsh island gives a competing route.
55,008 in the 1950s
#153
Rodney Rodney is a boy's name from an English place name, and its rise as a given name follows a single admiral — George Rodney, who broke the French line at the Saintes in 1782.
54,964 in the 1950s
#154
Bobby Bobby is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "bright fame."
54,499 in the 1950s
#156
Samuel Samuel is a boy's name of Hebrew origin usually translated as "God has heard," from Shemu'el.
53,985 in the 1950s
#158
Eric Eric is a boy's name of Old Norse origin meaning "eternal ruler" or "sole ruler."
53,444 in the 1950s
#159
Albert Albert is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "noble and bright."
53,083 in the 1950s
#160
Ronnie Ronnie is a name of Old Norse origin meaning "ruler's counsel."
52,878 in the 1950s
#161
Phillip Phillip is a boy's name meaning lover of horses, the doubled-l spelling of Philip.
52,645 in the 1950s
#166
Martin Martin is a boy's name of Latin origin meaning "of Mars," borne by Saint Martin of Tours, whose cloak gave Europe the word chapel.
51,137 in the 1950s
#172
Eugene Eugene is a boy's name from the Greek for well-born, and it is the source of the word eugenics — a connection worth knowing, since the name long predates and has nothing to do with that movement.
48,479 in the 1950s
#173
Mike Mike is a boy's name, the short form of Michael, from a Hebrew question meaning who is like God.
48,475 in the 1950s
#174
Louis Louis is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "famous warrior."
48,187 in the 1950s
#175
Howard Howard is a boy's name whose origin is genuinely contested — high guardian, brave heart and even a keeper of pigs have all been proposed.
48,009 in the 1950s
#177
Allen Allen is a boy's name whose meaning is genuinely unknown — rock, handsome and deer have all been proposed from an unidentified Breton source.
47,528 in the 1950s
#181
Curtis Curtis is a boy's name from a Norman French nickname meaning courteous, and it is one of very few names that describes manners rather than birth, appearance or trade.
46,651 in the 1950s
#183
Jeffery Jeffery is a boy's name whose first element is genuinely disputed, though the second means peace.
46,087 in the 1950s
#184
Frederick Frederick is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "peaceful ruler."
44,449 in the 1950s
#186
Leonard Leonard is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "lion-strong," and its saint is the patron of prisoners and of women in labor.
43,730 in the 1950s
#187
Harry Harry is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "home ruler."
43,489 in the 1950s
#195
Micheal Micheal is a boy's name of Hebrew origin whose full form is a rhetorical question — who is like God?
41,138 in the 1950s
#196
Tony Tony is a boy's name from the Roman family name Antonius, whose meaning has never been established.
41,118 in the 1950s
#198
Eddie Eddie is a boy's name, the pet form of Edward or Edwin, meaning wealth.
40,178 in the 1950s
#200
Ernest Ernest is a boy's name from a Germanic word meaning serious or resolute, and it is far stronger in Europe than in America — 252nd in England and Wales and 276th in France against 1042nd in the United States.
39,875 in the 1950s
#209
Fred Fred is a boy's name, the short form of Frederick meaning peaceful ruler.
37,584 in the 1950s
#210
Darrell Darrell does not mean beloved.
37,455 in the 1950s
#211
Jay Jay is a name serving as an initial-letter shortening for any J name, as a bird name, and as an Indian name meaning victory.
37,435 in the 1950s
#213
Francis Francis is a boy's name of Germanic origin meaning "Frenchman" or "free man."
36,880 in the 1950s
#215
Melvin Melvin is a boy's name from a Scottish place name, and the gentle chieftain reading usually given for it is an invention — the source is a Norman family who took their name from Malleville in France.
36,455 in the 1950s

What made a 1950s name

Nothing about the sound of it. A name is on this page because children in the United States were registered with it between 1950 and 1959, and its position is simply how many. Every list of "1950s names" you will find elsewhere is somebody's sense of the period; this one is the register.

Why Some Names Only Cover Part of the Decade

A name that appears in three of the ten years either arrived partway through or faded out — and either is more interesting than the total on its own. The statistics offices do not publish names given to very few children in a year, so a gap can also mean the count dropped below the threshold rather than to nothing.

Where to Go Next

Open any name to see its full curve — most of these have a hundred and forty years of it. Or compare the ends of the same measurement: the most popular names now and the rarest.