Most popular baby names of 1960

The baby name landscape in America saw some subtle shifts between 1959 and 1960, though the overall picture remained relatively stable. Looking at the top three names, the boys' rankings experienced a notable change as David overtook Michael for the number one spot in 1960, while James remained steadily in third position. For girls, the top three maintained perfect stability with Mary, Susan, and Linda holding their respective first, second, and third positions across both years.

Among the top 10 girls' names in 1960, Lisa made a remarkable jump, climbing four positions from #10 in 1959 to #6 in 1960. Patricia dropped slightly from sixth to seventh place, while Debra, Cynthia, and Deborah all showed minor fluctuations within the top 10. Traditional names like Mary and Barbara continued their strong showing, demonstrating the enduring appeal of classic feminine names during this period. Notably, most top 10 girls' names featured soft endings, with seven of the ten ending in "a" or the "ee" sound.

For boys' names, the top 10 in 1960 remained largely consistent with 1959, though with some minor reshuffling. Steven maintained its #10 position, while Timothy moved up one spot to #11. The classic male names James, John, Robert, William, Richard, and Thomas continued their strong presence in the top ranks. Interestingly, shorter names dominated the boys' top 10, with six of the names containing just one or two syllables. This reflects the preference for straightforward, traditional masculine names that characterized the early 1960s.

Looking at broader naming patterns, both boys' and girls' popular names showed remarkable consistency between 1959 and 1960, suggesting this was a period of naming stability rather than dramatic innovation. Biblical names remained prominent among boys (James, John, Michael, Thomas), while girls' names often featured softer sounds and endings. Notably, the letter "J" was particularly strong in boys' names, appearing in three of the top 20 names (James, Joseph, Jeffrey). For girls, the letter "D" made a strong showing with Donna, Debra, and Deborah all ranking in the top 10. The data reflects the conventional naming practices of early-60s America, just before the cultural shifts that would introduce more diverse naming patterns in later decades.

Top baby names of 1960