Most popular baby names of 1966

Looking at the baby name data for 1965-1966, I can see some interesting trends developing in American naming patterns. Let's examine how parents' preferences shifted during this period.

The top three names for boys remained remarkably stable from 1965 to 1966, with Michael holding strong at #1, while David moved up from #3 to claim the #2 spot, pushing John down to #4. James rose from #4 to take the #3 position. For girls, Lisa maintained its reign at #1 for both years, while Kimberly climbed from #4 to #2, and Mary fell from #2 to #3. This represents a more significant reshuffling in the girls' top ranks compared to the boys'.

Among the top 10 girls' names in 1966, the most dramatic change was Jennifer's climb from #20 in 1965 to #10 in 1966, suggesting its rising popularity that would eventually make it one of the defining names of the era. Michelle also made a notable leap from #18 to #4, indicating parents' growing preference for this French-derived name. Angela maintained steady popularity, staying in the top 10 both years. Names ending with the feminine "a" sound (Lisa, Angela) and "y" sound (Kimberly, Tammy) dominated the top ranks, showing parents' preference for distinctly feminine name endings.

The top 10 boys' names in 1966 showed more stability than the girls' rankings. Traditional masculine names continued their dominance, with Michael, David, James, John, and Robert maintaining their stronghold on the top spots. Thomas and Jeffrey remained firmly in the top 10, while Christopher showed modest improvement, rising from #18 to #12. Biblical names (Michael, David, James, John, Thomas) remained extremely popular for boys, representing half of the top 10 positions, reflecting America's continued preference for traditional religious names for sons.

Looking at broader naming patterns, short, approachable names dominated for both genders. For girls, four-letter names like Lisa, Mary, and Julie were particularly prevalent in the top ranks. Names with the "ee" sound ending (like Kimberly, Tammy) were trending upward for girls. For boys, classic names with Biblical origins continued their long-standing popularity, though some newer entrants like Todd (#29) and Troy (#48) suggested parents were beginning to explore less traditional options. Notably, the name Tracy appeared in both the boys' (#98) and girls' (#31) lists, though it was significantly more popular for girls, reflecting the early stages of what would become a trend of traditionally male names crossing over to become female favorites.

Top baby names of 1966