Born in 1982 · Millennials
Baby names of 1982
The Social Security name files, which cover every name given to at least 5 babies, list 3,507,772 babies born in 1982: 1,693,325 girls and 1,814,447 boys. Jennifer and Michael were the most popular names, and 20.7% of all babies got a top-10 name, down from 22.2% in 1972. The name most tied to 1982 is Sheena: among girls, it was 13× as common that year as in the decades around it.
Quick facts
- Generation
- Millennials
- Born 1981–1996
- Babies on record
- 3,507,772
- 1,693,325 girls · 1,814,447 boys
- Different names
- 12,332
- for girls, plus 7,367 for boys (5+ babies each)
- Top-10 names
- 20.7%
- of babies got one · girls 17.3%, boys 23.9%
Top 10 names of 1982
- Jennifer was the #1 name for girls every year from 1970 to 1984.
- Michael was the #1 name for boys every year from 1961 to 1998.
How many babies got a top-10 name?
In 1982, 20.7% 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 1982
These names were far more common in 1982 than in the decades around it: the multiplier compares each name's share of 1982 babies with its average share 6–25 years before and after.
| Name | Sex | Rank | Vs. nearby |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sheena | Girl | #149 | 13× |
| Krystle | Girl | #269 | 11× |
| Latoya | Girl | #91 | 9.9× |
| Jamaal | Boy | #286 | 8.7× |
| Lindsay | Girl | #39 | 6.1× |
| Latasha | Girl | #153 | 6.0× |
| Candice | Girl | #78 | 5.4× |
| Brandy | Girl | #50 | 5.1× |
| Crystal | Girl | #9 | 5.1× |
| Ebony | Girl | #132 | 5.0× |
Names that peaked in 1982
Each of these reached its highest share of US babies in 1982, the high point in records going back to 1880. Rank is for 1982.
| Name | Sex | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Crystal | Girl | #9 |
| Kristen | Girl | #33 |
| Natasha | Girl | #71 |
| Candice | Girl | #78 |
| Jillian | Girl | #96 |
| Candace | Girl | #103 |
| Ebony | Girl | #132 |
| Cassie | Girl | #137 |
| Tia | Girl | #221 |
| Randi | Girl | #235 |
New to the top 1,000 in 1982
Names that made the national top 1,000 for the first time in 1982 (records go back to 1880).
Girls
- Chelsey322 babies
- Kaleena270 babies
- Kala217 babies
- Kassie202 babies
- Jenilee192 babies
- Emilee189 babies
- Cassondra186 babies
- Shaina185 babies
Boys
- Colt344 babies
- Kiel194 babies
- Colton122 babies
- Eliezer115 babies
- Darrius93 babies
- Tuan93 babies
- Hung88 babies
- Long85 babies
Where are they now?
Top-100 names of 1982 that have since dropped out of the top 1,000. Ranks are for 1982 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