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Top 1980s Baby Names

The top baby names of the 1980s are the names of the new moms and dads of today. This is the decade that saw the peak of names such as Brittany, Allison, and Amber for girls, and Derek, Justin, and Brett for boys.

Along with Allison and Justin, other 1980s baby names that remain in the US Top 250 include Brandon, Emily, Jeremy, Kimberly, Lauren, Nathan, Rachel, and Ryan. The names that have dropped the most in popularity include Chad, Heather, Shannon, and Lindsay.

Sourced from the 1980s US Top 100, here is a list of popular names from the 1980s that which are relatively rare for babies today. But you'll probably recognize these 1980s names as the names of the other moms and dads in your childbirth class!

Jennifer

Meaning: white shadow, white wave

Origin:Cornish variation of Welsh Guinevere
464
Emily

Meaning: rival

Origin:Feminine variation of Emil, Latin
120
Katherine

Meaning: pure

Origin:Greek
262
Rachel

Meaning: ewe

Origin:Hebrew
284
Sarah

Meaning: princess

Origin:Hebrew
345
Jessica Foresighted, to see before
Origin:English, meaning unknown
676
Matthew

Meaning: gift of God

Origin:Hebrew
120
Thomas

Meaning: twin

Origin:Aramaic
59
Adam

Meaning: son of the red earth

Origin:Hebrew
154
Nathan

Meaning: given

Origin:Hebrew
121
Nicholas

Meaning: people of victory

Origin:Greek
124
Joshua

Meaning: the Lord is my salvation

Origin:Hebrew
173
Christopher

Meaning: bearer of Christ

Origin:Greek and Latin
206
Peter

Meaning: rock

Origin:Greek
107
Patrick

Meaning: noble, patrician

Origin:Latin
205
Paul

Meaning: small

Origin:Latin
265
Eric

Meaning: eternal ruler

Origin:Old Norse
272
Aaron

Meaning: high mountain; exalted, enlightened

Origin:Hebrew
171
Sara

Meaning: princess

Origin:Hebrew
533
Kevin

Meaning: handsome

Origin:Irish
563