Popular Names of 1970

The 20 most popular names given to female and to male babies born in 1970, as recorded, with each name’s rank in 2025.

Table 1. Female names, 1970
Rank	Name	Number	Rank in 2025
1	Jennifer	46,150	586
2	Lisa	38,967	991
3	Kimberly	34,130	303
4	Michelle	34,047	465
5	Amy	25,212	257
6	Angela	24,929	408
7	Melissa	23,735	420
8	Tammy	19,587	3,703
9	Mary	19,204	125
10	Tracy	18,464	2,171
11	Julie	17,158	873
12	Karen	16,699	1,281
13	Laura	16,490	379
14	Christine	16,061	1,274
15	Susan	15,738	1,091
16	Dawn	15,681	2,174
17	Stephanie	15,387	557
18	Elizabeth	15,108	17
19	Heather	14,669	1,264
20	Kelly	14,607	852

Table 2. Male names, 1970
Rank	Name	Number	Rank in 2025
1	Michael	85,266	21
2	James	61,735	6
3	David	61,728	35
4	John	58,491	23
5	Robert	57,177	92
6	Christopher	41,747	68
7	William	38,887	9
8	Brian	31,917	339
9	Mark	31,461	245
10	Richard	30,442	234
11	Jeffrey	30,139	552
12	Scott	28,565	534
13	Jason	27,272	165
14	Kevin	26,968	221
15	Steven	26,793	271
16	Joseph	26,714	29
17	Thomas	26,669	34
18	Eric	23,571	273
19	Daniel	23,521	22
20	Timothy	22,422	203

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As recorded on the Social Security card application. Names given to fewer than five babies of a sex in a year are not published, so the file is a floor.