The Most Popular Baby Names of 2022 

The 'Yellowstone' effect

As is often the case, the latest SSA list shows the pull of pop culture on new parents. For example, Yellowstone fans will recognize Dutton, the boy's name making the biggest jump last year, as the surname of Kevin Costner's brood in the hit TV western. The second fastest-rising male moniker, Kayce, is sported on the show by one of the Costner character's sons.

Similarly, from time to time a hit song will inspire a popular baby name. Rosanna, for example, shot up from No. 821 to 439 in 1982, the year Toto released its smash “Rosanna.” Similarly, Windy hit the list of the 1,000 most popular names in 1967, the year The Association had a hit of the same name. (Both names have long since dropped out of the top 1,000.)

A popular person will also inspire parents. Elvis, for example, peaked at No. 404 in 1978, the year after Presley's death; it last made the list in 2011, at 904. Britney jumped from No. 452 in 1998 to 137 in 2000 as Britney Spears took over the pop charts. Jesus has been in the top 500 names since 1900; Muhammad has been steadily gaining in popularity since 1976.

The movie Rocky was released in November 1976. The name Rocky rose from No. 383 that year to 328 in 1977, and peaked at 302 in 1979. It actually hit its peak in 1955, at No. 240, up from 954 in 1942. One possible explanation: Boxer Rocky Marciano, the only heavyweight champion to retire undefeated, held the world title from 1952 to 1956.

Where you live can have a bearing on what you’ll name your children, too. Parents in the Northwest are the least likely to choose the most popular names for their kids. In Oregon, for example, Oliver and Evelyn outpaced Liam and Olivia in 2021 (the SSA won’t have updated state-by-state info available until later this month), and in Montana, the top 10s include Asher, Jackson, Hazel and Willow. States with large Latino populations such as Texas and New Mexico are home to many a young Mateo and Santiago.

Other names tend to reflect the age. A 2003 paper by Matthew W. Hahn and R. Alexander Bentley argues that unusual times bring unusual names. The popularity of new and unusual names rose in the 1920s, they say, but plummeted in the 1940s and 1950s.

Still other names may have fallen out of use because they seem old-fashioned. Homer was a reasonably popular name in the early 20th century, ranking 80th in 1900, according to the SSA. Its last appearance on the list was in 1983, well before the debut of The Simpsons, which probably doomed the name for decades. (For completists, Maggie was the No. 295 girl’s name in 2022, Lisa was at No. 933, Bart last made the top 1,000 in 1987; and Marge dropped off the list in the late 1940s.)

The SSA began compiling and annually publicizing its list of the most popular baby names in 1997, but its database has nomenclature information going back to 1880, when the most popular names were John (now No.26) and Mary (136).

You can disappear down a very deep rabbit hole (or into a very large stork’s nest, if you prefer) of naming data at the SSA’s baby names website. You’ll find links there to other Social Security information for parents, such as how to get your baby their all-important nine-digit number.