Silent Generation names
The most given names of Silent Generation (born 1928-1945) were Mary and Robert. The names most over-represented in those years are Carole, Dolores, Patsy for girls and Dick, Bob, Gene for boys, each given at least 3.8 times as often then as across 1880-2025. An estimated 10.7 million Americans born in the U.S. in those years are alive in 2026.
Babies given each name per year; 1928-1945 shaded.
Births 1928-1945: SSA national file, published May 8, 2026; the living figure uses SSA’s cohort life tables. SSA’s notes on the data.
The most given names
| # | Name | Births |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary | 1,068,831 |
| 2 | Barbara | 569,249 |
| 3 | Betty | 497,552 |
| 4 | Patricia | 467,910 |
| 5 | Shirley | 361,031 |
| 6 | Dorothy | 360,597 |
| 7 | Carol | 294,108 |
| 8 | Margaret | 293,342 |
| 9 | Nancy | 287,508 |
| 10 | Joan | 269,691 |
| 11 | Helen | 241,249 |
| 12 | Joyce | 223,764 |
| 13 | Linda | 222,445 |
| 14 | Ruth | 196,240 |
| 15 | Virginia | 191,209 |
| 16 | Judith | 189,538 |
| 17 | Doris | 185,027 |
| 18 | Elizabeth | 183,924 |
| 19 | Sandra | 183,248 |
| 20 | Carolyn | 180,831 |
| 21 | Marilyn | 167,911 |
| 22 | Frances | 167,783 |
| 23 | Donna | 166,602 |
| 24 | Jean | 165,598 |
| 25 | Janet | 154,410 |
| # | Name | Births |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Robert | 1,124,302 |
| 2 | James | 1,090,473 |
| 3 | John | 973,833 |
| 4 | William | 819,627 |
| 5 | Richard | 647,025 |
| 6 | Charles | 568,439 |
| 7 | Donald | 476,341 |
| 8 | Thomas | 394,816 |
| 9 | David | 391,873 |
| 10 | George | 359,988 |
| 11 | Joseph | 349,325 |
| 12 | Ronald | 299,483 |
| 13 | Edward | 281,081 |
| 14 | Kenneth | 251,905 |
| 15 | Paul | 248,029 |
| 16 | Frank | 202,724 |
| 17 | Michael | 195,318 |
| 18 | Larry | 194,845 |
| 19 | Raymond | 185,958 |
| 20 | Jerry | 184,485 |
| 21 | Harold | 168,752 |
| 22 | Jack | 163,928 |
| 23 | Gerald | 157,182 |
| 24 | Walter | 150,327 |
| 25 | Gary | 147,840 |
Most given: births summed over 1928-1945, per sex.
Which names define Silent Generation?
A name’s share of births in these years divided by its share across the whole record, for names given to at least 10,000 babies in the span and to one sex at least 90% of the time.
Typical: share in the span over share in 1880-2025.