Born in 1947 · Baby Boomers
Baby names of 1947
The Social Security name files, which cover every name given to at least 5 babies, list 3,602,365 babies born in 1947: 1,772,766 girls and 1,829,599 boys. Linda and James were the most popular names, and 30.1% of all babies got a top-10 name, up from 28.6% in 1937. The name most tied to 1947 is Sharyn: among girls, it was 16× as common that year as in the decades around it.
Quick facts
- Generation
- Baby Boomers
- Born 1946–1964
- Babies on record
- 3,602,365
- 1,772,766 girls · 1,829,599 boys
- Different names
- 6,104
- for girls, plus 4,266 for boys (5+ babies each)
- Top-10 names
- 30.1%
- of babies got one · girls 25.7%, boys 34.4%
Top 10 names of 1947
- Linda was the #1 name for girls every year from 1947 to 1952.
- James was the #1 name for boys every year from 1940 to 1952.
How many babies got a top-10 name?
In 1947, 30.1% of babies were given one of that year's 10 most popular names. Across all years, that share fell from 29.0% in 1935 to 7.5% in 2025.
Names that sound like 1947
These names were far more common in 1947 than in the decades around it: the multiplier compares each name's share of 1947 babies with its average share 6–25 years before and after.
| Name | Sex | Rank | Vs. nearby |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sharyn | Girl | #247 | 16× |
| Linda | Girl | #1 | 6.0× |
| Lynda | Girl | #77 | 5.2× |
| Paulette | Girl | #134 | 4.8× |
| Janis | Girl | #108 | 4.7× |
| Judy | Girl | #14 | 4.2× |
| Dianne | Girl | #83 | 3.5× |
| Marsha | Girl | #88 | 3.5× |
| Judith | Girl | #12 | 3.4× |
| Sharron | Girl | #280 | 3.4× |
Names that peaked in 1947
Each of these reached its highest share of US babies in 1947, the high point in records going back to 1880. Rank is for 1947.
| Name | Sex | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Larry | Boy | #10 |
| Nancy | Girl | #7 |
| Wayne | Boy | #30 |
| Allen | Boy | #73 |
| Lynda | Girl | #77 |
| Janis | Girl | #108 |
| Phil | Boy | #261 |
| Diann | Girl | #338 |
| Aleta | Girl | #511 |
| Charleen | Girl | #561 |
New to the top 1,000 in 1947
Names that made the national top 1,000 for the first time in 1947 (records go back to 1880).
Where are they now?
Top-100 names of 1947 that have since dropped out of the top 1,000. Ranks are for 1947 and 2025.
Girls
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data