Gnarly – The Top Missouri Boys and Girls Names from the 1980’s
Some of the top baby names for the past year were Oliver and Liam. It didn't use to be that way. I found a completely retro look back to what parents in Missouri were naming their kids in the 1980's and it's completely gnarly.
The credit must go to Stacker for doing the legwork for this 1980's top Missouri baby names list for boys and girls. Since I believe in chivalry, let's have the ladies go first. Here are the top 10 Missouri girl names from the 1980's according to data that Stacker used from the Social Security Administration:
10. Megan
9. Elizabeth
8. Melissa
7. Stephanie
6. Heather
5. Sarah
4. Ashley
3. Jennifer
2. Amanda
1. Jessica
What about the boys? There were in fact boys back in the 1980's, too. Stacker listed the Top 50. Here are the top 10 from their list:
10. John
9. Ryan
8. Andrew
7. Justin
6. David
5. James
4. Joshua
3. Matthew
2. Christopher
1. Michael
If you compare the top Missouri baby names from the 1980's with the most popular from 2021, you'll notice there were a lot more traditional names that were in fashion. Baby Center shows Oliver, Noah and Liam were among the top boy names last year while Olivia, Emma and Amelia were tops amongst the girls.
I also find it interesting that absolutely NONE of the top baby names from the 1980's even made the top 10 for last year. No offense to all the Harpers and Isabellas these days, but I miss some of the more common names from a couple decades ago.
Oh, well. Times change and that includes the names I suppose. Make sure you check out the complete top 50 girl and boy names from Stacker. A really interesting look back at the most excellent decade.