Born in 2008 · Gen Z
Baby names of 2008
The Social Security name files, which cover every name given to at least 5 babies, list 3,931,088 babies born in 2008: 1,890,938 girls and 2,040,150 boys. Emma and Jacob were the most popular names, and 9.0% of all babies got a top-10 name, down from 13.0% in 1998. The name most tied to 2008 is Miley: among girls, it was 13× as common that year as in the decades around it.
Quick facts
- Generation
- Gen Z
- Born 1997–2012
- Babies on record
- 3,931,088
- 1,890,938 girls · 2,040,150 boys
- Different names
- 20,482
- for girls, plus 14,625 for boys (5+ babies each)
- Top-10 names
- 9.0%
- of babies got one · girls 8.5%, boys 9.5%
Top 10 names of 2008
- Emma was the #1 name for girls in 2008.
- Jacob was the #1 name for boys every year from 1999 to 2012.
How many babies got a top-10 name?
In 2008, 9.0% 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 2008
These names were far more common in 2008 than in the decades around it: the multiplier compares each name's share of 2008 babies with its average share 6–25 years before and after.
| Name | Sex | Rank | Vs. nearby |
|---|---|---|---|
| Miley | Girl | #129 | 13× |
| Kimora | Girl | #291 | 9.2× |
| Jayden | Girl | #176 | 8.8× |
| Addyson | Girl | #241 | 7.5× |
| Keira | Girl | #123 | 6.4× |
| Cadence | Girl | #212 | 6.3× |
| Landen | Boy | #199 | 6.2× |
| Aniya | Girl | #273 | 5.4× |
| Kaydence | Girl | #286 | 5.4× |
| Aidan | Boy | #59 | 5.4× |
Names that peaked in 2008
Each of these reached its highest share of US babies in 2008, the high point in records going back to 1880. Rank is for 2008.
| Name | Sex | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Gavin | Boy | #30 |
| Adrian | Boy | #56 |
| Brody | Boy | #70 |
| Makayla | Girl | #37 |
| Hayden | Girl | #127 |
| Miley | Girl | #129 |
| Marley | Girl | #145 |
| Landen | Boy | #199 |
| Keegan | Boy | #223 |
| Kamryn | Girl | #269 |
New to the top 1,000 in 2008
Names that made the national top 1,000 for the first time in 2008 (records go back to 1880).
Girls
- Allisson768 babies
- Caylee600 babies
- Mareli411 babies
- Dayami392 babies
- Alisson374 babies
- Nylah349 babies
- Jazlene340 babies
- Adalynn330 babies
Boys
- Aaden958 babies
- Chace367 babies
- Marley291 babies
- Kash286 babies
- Brogan259 babies
- Kymani258 babies
- Ishaan249 babies
- Jadiel241 babies
Where are they now?
Top-100 names of 2008 that have since dropped out of the top 1,000. Ranks are for 2008 and 2025.
Girls
- Alexa #50 in 2008 , now #1,029 in 2025
- Katelyn #80 in 2008 , now #1,077 in 2025
Boys
Every top-100 boys' name from 2008 is still in the 2025 top 1,000.
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