Boys' name · peaked in 1926
Junior name popularity since 1925
35,825 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Junior. Half of them were born in 1945 or earlier, so the typical Junior is about 81 years old in 2026. Junior peaked in 1926 as the #117 name for boys, and it ranked #752 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 35,825
- Named Junior, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1926
- #117 for boys that year
- In 2025
- #752
- for boys in 2025 (343 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 149 girls · 35,676 boys
- Most popular in
- West Virginia
- 5.83× its national share
Peak year is the year Junior made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Junior births per year, 1925–2025
1926 was the biggest year for Junior both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Steepest fall: Between 1932 and 1937, Junior's share of baby boys fell by 50%.
- Fastest rise: Between 1990 and 1995, it became 1.6× more common, from 1 in 13,500 baby boys to 1 in 8,500.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Junior's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Junior.
Decade by decade
Babies named Junior in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 77 | 7,658 | – |
| 1930s | 61 | 8,004 | #191 |
| 1940s | 6 | 3,804 | #298 |
| 1950s | 0 | 2,375 | #482 |
| 1960s | 0 | 1,535 | #622 |
| 1970s | 0 | 948 | #920 |
| 1980s | 0 | 1,213 | #856 |
| 1990s | 5 | 1,908 | #710 |
| 2000s | 0 | 3,340 | #609 |
| 2010s | 0 | 2,795 | #823 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 2,096 | #752 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
37.7% of babies named Junior from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Silent Generation years (1928–1945). The full split by generation:
Where Junior is most popular
The index compares Junior's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Junior.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| West Virginia | 5.83× | 1,635 |
| Arkansas | 3.87× | 1,269 |
| Kentucky | 3.09× | 1,649 |
| Oklahoma | 2.85× | 1,186 |
| Tennessee | 2.46× | 1,650 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 1999 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Junior's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Junior.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Junior (1926).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data