Born in 1965 · Gen X
Baby names of 1965
The Social Security name files, which cover every name given to at least 5 babies, list 3,625,307 babies born in 1965: 1,765,164 girls and 1,860,143 boys. Lisa and Michael were the most popular names, and 22.4% of all babies got a top-10 name, down from 27.3% in 1955. The name most tied to 1965 is Darrin: among boys, it was 13× as common that year as in the decades around it.
Quick facts
- Generation
- Gen X
- Born 1965–1980
- Babies on record
- 3,625,307
- 1,765,164 girls · 1,860,143 boys
- Different names
- 7,535
- for girls, plus 4,425 for boys (5+ babies each)
- Top-10 names
- 22.4%
- of babies got one · girls 16.0%, boys 28.4%
Top 10 names of 1965
- Lisa was the #1 name for girls every year from 1962 to 1969.
- Michael was the #1 name for boys every year from 1961 to 1998.
How many babies got a top-10 name?
In 1965, 22.4% 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 1965
These names were far more common in 1965 than in the decades around it: the multiplier compares each name's share of 1965 babies with its average share 6–25 years before and after.
| Name | Sex | Rank | Vs. nearby |
|---|---|---|---|
| Darrin | Boy | #102 | 13× |
| Vonda | Girl | #261 | 10× |
| Darin | Boy | #123 | 7.8× |
| Daren | Boy | #271 | 7.3× |
| Kris | Girl | #277 | 7.1× |
| Darren | Boy | #52 | 5.9× |
| Lisa | Girl | #1 | 5.8× |
| Kim | Girl | #43 | 5.5× |
| Tammy | Girl | #11 | 5.4× |
| Jeff | Boy | #62 | 4.9× |
Names that peaked in 1965
Each of these reached its highest share of US babies in 1965, the high point in records going back to 1880. Rank is for 1965.
| Name | Sex | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Lisa | Girl | #1 |
| Kevin | Boy | #13 |
| Rodney | Boy | #33 |
| Rhonda | Girl | #37 |
| Darren | Boy | #52 |
| Darryl | Boy | #68 |
| Jon | Boy | #78 |
| Darrin | Boy | #102 |
| Darin | Boy | #123 |
| Lynette | Girl | #225 |
New to the top 1,000 in 1965
Names that made the national top 1,000 for the first time in 1965 (records go back to 1880).
Girls
- Marnie266 babies
- Dionne242 babies
- Kimberlie134 babies
- Casandra128 babies
- Gabriela128 babies
- Marni127 babies
- Tangela124 babies
- Kimberely123 babies
Boys
- Daryn108 babies
- Darien106 babies
- Darryn82 babies
- Shon82 babies
- Trace71 babies
- Roderic68 babies
- Darian67 babies
- Dario62 babies
Where are they now?
Top-100 names of 1965 that have since dropped out of the top 1,000. Ranks are for 1965 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