DENVER (KDVR) — Do you think you have a common name? It may not be as common as you think in Colorado.
Some of the top names were only popular for a year, like the infamous name Karen, while other names had popularity that spanned across decades.
If your name is James or Emma and you were born in Colorado, sorry, you’re not that unique. The name James was popular for 30 years between the 1960s through the end of the 1980s, then made a reappearance from 2020 to 2022. Meanwhile, Emma became popular in the 2000s, and to this day, it’s still in the top 10 most common names.
Some names were only common 50 years ago. The name Michael was in style for five decades from the 1960s to the 2000s. Michael hasn’t been in the top 10 since.
Other names are becoming increasingly popular. Oliver and Olivia hit the first and second spots in recent years.
FOX31 looked through each decade on the Social Security website, which tracks popular baby names dating back to 1960. See how common your name is in the state of Colorado:
1960s
Rank | Male name | Number of males | Female name | Number of females |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | David | 898 | Mary | 439 |
2 | Michael | 797 | Karen | 371 |
3 | John | 732 | Susan | 352 |
4 | Robert | 705 | Linda | 351 |
5 | Mark | 652 | Lisa | 314 |
6 | James | 628 | Debbie | 309 |
7 | Richard | 426 | Debra | 278 |
8 | William | 361 | Cynthia | 273 |
9 | Steven | 358 | Patricia | 265 |
10 | Daniel | 322 | Sandra | 254 |
1970s
1 | Michael | 972 | Jennifer | 527 |
2 | David | 673 | Michelle | 525 |
3 | Robert | 654 | Lisa | 413 |
4 | John | 622 | Kimberly | 329 |
5 | James | 558 | Amy | 282 |
6 | Christopher | 480 | Heather | 237 |
7 | Mark | 393 | Julie | 211 |
8 | Brian | 391 | Melissa | 207 |
9 | Jason | 383 | Shannon | 207 |
10 | Richard | 373 | Stephanie | 200 |
1980s
1 | Michael | 904 | Jennifer | 858 |
2 | Christopher | 701 | Jessica | 491 |
3 | Matthew | 682 | Sarah | 483 |
4 | Joshua | 611 | Amanda | 440 |
5 | Jason | 580 | Melissa | 422 |
6 | David | 538 | Michelle | 321 |
7 | Ryan | 510 | Nicole | 292 |
8 | Justin | 480 | Heather | 269 |
9 | James | 448 | Amber | 266 |
10 | John | 446 | Stephanie | 256 |
1990s
1 | Michael | 817 | Jessica | 574 |
2 | Christopher | 644 | Ashley | 535 |
3 | Joshua | 611 | Amanda | 484 |
4 | Matthew | 570 | Brittany | 450 |
5 | Andrew | 517 | Sarah | 378 |
6 | Ryan | 458 | Samantha | 333 |
7 | Nicholas | 445 | Megan | 292 |
8 | David | 415 | Lauren | 289 |
9 | Kyle | 401 | Jennifer | 288 |
10 | Tyler | 388 | Stephanie | 279 |
2000s
1 | Jacob | 519 | Emily | 367 |
2 | Michael | 443 | Hannah | 322 |
3 | Joshua | 425 | Madison | 321 |
4 | Matthew | 372 | Ashley | 285 |
5 | Ryan | 370 | Emma | 269 |
6 | Nicholas | 361 | Sarah | 268 |
7 | Tyler | 357 | Jessica | 253 |
8 | Andrew | 350 | Taylor | 244 |
9 | Joseph | 345 | Lauren | 241 |
10 | Benjamin | 330 | Samantha | 239 |
2010s
1 | Jacob | 338 | Isabella | 342 |
2 | Alexander | 308 | Sophia | 317 |
3 | Noah | 283 | Olivia | 268 |
4 | Daniel | 266 | Emma | 266 |
5 | William | 265 | Abigail | 245 |
6 | Liam | 251 | Ava | 219 |
7 | Elijah | 245 | Emily | 210 |
8 | Logan | 243 | Elizabeth | 205 |
9 | Gabriel | 241 | Madison | 189 |
10 | Samuel | 241 | Ella | 175 |
2020s
1 | Liam | 315 | Olivia | 323 |
2 | Oliver | 275 | Charlotte | 280 |
3 | Noah | 261 | Emma | 259 |
4 | Henry | 240 | Sophia | 224 |
5 | William | 236 | Amelia | 205 |
6 | James | 234 | Evelyn | 191 |
7 | Theodore | 229 | Isabella | 187 |
8 | Jack | 214 | Ava | 183 |
9 | Benjamin | 204 | Mia | 168 |
10 | Elijah | 203 | Harper | 157 |
Most recent: 2022
1 | Oliver | 346 | Olivia | 300 |
2 | Liam | 342 | Emma | 274 |
3 | Theodore | 290 | Charlotte | 245 |
4 | Noah | 280 | Sophia | 209 |
5 | Henry | 253 | Mia | 203 |
6 | William | 235 | Evelyn | 194 |
7 | James | 231 | Isabella | 176 |
8 | Jack | 220 | Harper | 175 |
9 | Mateo | 215 | Amelia | 173 |
10 | Elijah | 200 | Ava | 165 |
If your name isn’t as unique as you thought, this list is only in Colorado. The entire list of the most common baby names in the U.S. is slightly different, as long as you didn’t name your child Oliver or Olivia in 2022.