Baby names from the 1960s include the ever-popular Michael and Mary, as well as names from the Bible. Although it was a tumultuous decade, baby name choices remained classical and traditional. In fact, many of the most popular baby names of the 1960s were again the top choices in the 1970s, reflecting the fact that they had lasting appeal.
Top Ten Boys
The top name of the decade for boys was Michael, which means “Who is like God?” The number baby boys given the name Michael during the decade was 833,181, according to the U.S. Social Security Administration. Michael was also the top boy’s name in the 1970s. Michael was closely followed by David, a popular name from the Bible, with 733,964 boys receiving that name. After David came John, James, Robert, Mark, William, Richard, Thomas and Jeffrey — all of which would remain popular choices in the 1970s.
Top Ten Girls
The 1960s were a momentous decade for baby girl names, because it marked the first time that the name Mary was not the top choice among parents for their little girls. In fact, Mary had been the top choice for girls since the U.S. Social Security Department began tracking baby names in 1880. In the 1960s, Mary was replaced by Lisa, which means “My God is a vow.” Mary remained in second place, however, with 355,191 babies given the name, as opposed to the 496,917 baby girls named Lisa. Susan, Karen, Kimberly, Patricia, Linda, Donna, Michelle and Cynthia rounded out the top ten.
Other Names
Stephen, Joseph, Timothy, Kevin and Scott were the next five most popular boy names, followed by Brian, Charles, Paul, Daniel and Christopher. Christopher would quickly shoot up in popularity, however, moving from the 20th most popular name in the 1960s to the second most popular name a decade later. Sandra, Deborah, Tammy, Pamela and Lori were numbers 10 through 15 for the girls, followed by Laura, Elizabeth, Julie, Brenda and Jennifer. Jennifer would perform even better than Christopher, moving from the 20th spot in the 1960s all the way to the top spot for baby girl names in the 1970s.
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