babynamepicker

Girl Names of the 1970s

The 100 most common girl names given in the United States during the 1970s, by the number of children recorded with each name across those years.

All 100 names

  1. Jennifer 581,729
  2. Amy 268,994
  3. Melissa 253,267
  4. Michelle 249,130
  5. Kimberly 229,097
  6. Lisa 228,690
  7. Angela 225,262
  8. Heather 203,902
  9. Stephanie 160,468
  10. Nicole 144,667
  11. Jessica 143,492
  12. Elizabeth 142,845
  13. Rebecca 137,285
  14. Kelly 133,545
  15. Mary 126,254
  16. Christina 125,747
  17. Amanda 123,920
  18. Julie 121,919
  19. Sarah 118,823
  20. Laura 118,204
  21. Shannon 113,793
  22. Christine 103,236
  23. Tammy 98,830
  24. Tracy 95,536
  25. Karen 95,173
  26. Dawn 92,446
  27. Susan 88,308
  28. Andrea 86,424
  29. Tina 84,764
  30. Patricia 81,111
  31. Cynthia 80,196
  32. Lori 77,777
  33. Rachel 77,749
  34. April 76,946
  35. Maria 76,373
  36. Wendy 74,185
  37. Crystal 73,757
  38. Stacy 69,901
  39. Erin 67,888
  40. Jamie 67,845
  41. Carrie 66,825
  42. Tiffany 65,158
  43. Tara 65,072
  44. Sandra 64,340
  45. Monica 61,680
  46. Danielle 60,918
  47. Stacey 59,210
  48. Pamela 58,039
  49. Tonya 57,789
  50. Sara 56,958
  51. Michele 56,560
  52. Teresa 56,037
  53. Denise 55,868
  54. Jill 55,070
  55. Katherine 54,048
  56. Melanie 53,323
  57. Dana 51,358
  58. Holly 50,464
  59. Erica 49,595
  60. Brenda 48,591
  61. Deborah 47,855
  62. Tanya 47,830
  63. Sharon 47,768
  64. Donna 47,342
  65. Amber 47,063
  66. Emily 46,839
  67. Robin 45,943
  68. Linda 45,900
  69. Kathleen 44,847
  70. Leslie 44,839
  71. Christy 44,592
  72. Kristen 44,206
  73. Catherine 43,864
  74. Kristin 42,384
  75. Misty 42,375
  76. Barbara 42,237
  77. Heidi 42,219
  78. Nancy 41,850
  79. Cheryl 40,393
  80. Theresa 40,076
  81. Brandy 40,070
  82. Alicia 39,253
  83. Veronica 38,787
  84. Gina 38,120
  85. Jacqueline 37,962
  86. Rhonda 37,946
  87. Anna 37,813
  88. Renee 37,591
  89. Megan 37,355
  90. Tamara 37,076
  91. Melinda 36,438
  92. Kathryn 36,434
  93. Debra 34,605
  94. Sherry 34,204
  95. Allison 34,158
  96. Valerie 33,810
  97. Diana 33,348
  98. Paula 32,724
  99. Kristina 32,650
  100. Ann 32,030

How 1970s girl names compare

Jennifer was the most common girl name of the 1970s, given to 581,729 girls across those years, with Amy, Melissa, Michelle and Kimberly behind it. The hundredth name on the list, Ann, accounts for 32,030. Between them the hundred names cover 8,279,177 births. Jennifer was number one in every one of those ten years.

64 of these names were also in the 1960s top 100, and 36 were not. Four are still in the 2025 top 100 — Elizabeth, Sarah, Maria and Emily — and 28 are inside the top 500.

Those hundred names cover 53.6% of all girls born in the 1970s — 8,279,177 of 15,452,187 — and Jennifer alone accounts for 3.8% of them. The hundred most common names of 2025 take 31.5% between them, so naming has spread wider since. Every one of the hundred was already in the record before the 1970s began.

Questions about 1970s girl names

What was the most popular girl name of the 1970s?

Jennifer, given to 581,729 girls across those years. The next two were Amy and Melissa.

Are 1970s girl names still used today?

Four of the hundred are in the 2025 top 100: Elizabeth, Sarah, Maria and Emily.