19 Vintage 1970s Baby Girl Names That Are Getting Popular Again
They have a retro ring to them.
Gen X was born in a period of great change, and the baby names of the era were no exception. It was a time that saw a changeover from the stalwart names of the 1950s, like Mary, Susan, and Linda, to more modern favorites for the time, like Jennifer, Michelle, and Amy.
And, since these things tend to go in cycles, some of those names are experiencing a surge in popularity again. The Social Security Administration (SSA) keeps track of the 1,000 most popular names each year going back to 1900. According to the SSA, these are the most popular girl names of the 1970s that are coming back today. All of them ranked in the top 200 names for the '70s, and all of them have experienced a jump of more than 10 places in rank between last year and the year before. Do they have what it takes to keep climbing?
Angie
SSA rank in the 1970s: 193
SSA rank today: 592
Year-over-year increase in rank: 147 places
Meaning: "angel" or "messenger of God"
The Rolling Stones were crooning their hit "Angie" over the air waves in 1973, so it's no wonder the name made a big impression on the decade. The name Angie, as in Police Woman star Angie Dickinson, peaked two years later, in 1975, when it was No. 140 on the SSA list. Today, it's fallen much farther down on the list, to No. 592 — but it made a huge jump in popularity between last year and the year before, when it was No. 739. Will it improve on its 1975 rank? You can't say we never tried.
Deborah
SSA rank in the 1970s: 61
SSA rank today: 852
Year-over-year increase in rank: 116 places
Meaning: "bee"
Deborah, as in Blondie frontwoman Deborah (Debbie) Harry, was way past its peak in the '70s. It actually was the most popular decades before, in 1955, when it was the third most popular name in the country. Now it's in the lower reaches of the SSA top 1,000 names, but it's hanging in— and possibly staging a comeback. Like Angie, Deborah jumped more than 100 places in rank between last year and the year before, which means that Deborah is on the upswing.
RELATED: 21 Vintage Girl Names from the 1950s That Are Making a Comeback
Jamie
SSA rank in the 1970s: 40
SSA rank today: 716
Year-over-year increase in rank: 67 places
Meaning: "supplanter"
Jamie, like scream queen Jamie Lee Curtis, really burst onto the scene in the '70s. It didn't make the top 100 girl names in the '60s, and then popped up to No. 40 in the '70s. It peaked in 1977—one year before Curtis debuted in Halloween—at No. 18. And while it's not close to those heights now, it jumped more than 60 places in rank last year, possibly due to the trend of parents looking for unisex and gender-neutral names.
Leslie
SSA rank in the 1970s: 70
SSA rank today: 605
Year-over-year increase in rank: 65 places
Meaning: "garden of holly"
Speaking of gender-neutral names, Leslie, as in stage and screen actress Leslie Uggams, was a popular choice for both boys and girls in the '70s (though it was a top 100 name for girls, and ranked lower for boys). The name fell off the SSA list for boys in 1997, though, but the girls soldiered on, and is starting to get even more popular.
Bonnie
SSA rank in the 1970s: 171
SSA rank today: 441
Year-over-year increase in rank: 61 places
Meaning: "beautiful"
Bonnie, another name that peaked in the 1950s, hasn't always had the easiest fortunes. It fell in and out of favor over the years, and dropped off the SSA list in 2004. But things have really reversed for Bonnie, as in country singer Bonnie Raitt: It re-entered the list in 2014 at No. 867, and has grown in popularity almost every year since.
Tiffany
SSA rank in the 1970s: 42
SSA rank today: 842
Year-over-year increase in rank: 55 places
Meaning: "manifestation of God"
Unlike the previous names on this list, Tiffany—as in Marcus Welby, M.D. actress Tiffany Bolling—was still on the way up in the '70s. It didn't wind up having its peak until 1988, when it was No. 13. But being so closely associated with the '70s and '80s made Tiffany fall out of favor, and the name continued to decrease in popularity in the decades since. But perhaps enough time has passed because, since 2022, the name has been slowly rising again.
RELATED: The 20 Most Popular Baby Names of the 1980s to Add to Your List
Natasha
SSA rank in the 1970s: 151
SSA rank today: 933
Year-over-year increase in rank: 53 places
Meaning: "birthday of the Lord"
Natasha, like actress Natasha Richardson, was a relative newbie to the SSA list in the '70s. It only made the list for the first time in 1965, when it debuted at No. 931, and it kept up its momentum until 1986, when it peaked at No. 70. That's an impressive rise for such a short period of time. Since 2020, the name has been ping-ponging up and down in popularity, but this year is an up year.
Virginia
SSA rank in the 1970s: 159
SSA rank today: 510
Year-over-year increase in rank: 50 places
Meaning: "pure"
Place names are having a moment right now, and it's not unusual to see babies named Brooklyn, Paris, Savannah, and London. So it makes sense that Virginia—as in Bob Newhart wife Virginia Newhart—is also experiencing a boost. While Virginia experienced its biggest period of popularity way back in the '20s, in the '70s, the name was so trendy that its nickname, Ginny, made the SSA list on its own (though Ginny fell off the list in 1983 and hasn't returned since).
RELATED: The 20 Most Popular Baby Names of the 1920s to Add to Your List
Cynthia
SSA rank in the 1970s: 31
SSA rank today: 826
Year-over-year increase in rank: 45 places
Meaning: "from Mount Kynthos"
In addition to place names, names inspired by mythology—think Freya, Athena, Luna and Phoebe—are also a big trend right now. That works in favor for Cynthia, as in Sly and the Family Stone founding member Cynthia Robinson, since it's another name for the goddess Artemis (who was born on Mount Kynthos). In the '70s, it was a top-100 name, and while it's now fallen to the bottom of the SSA list, it has been experiencing two years of jumps in popularity. The moon may rise again.
Bridget
SSA rank in the 1970s: 153
SSA rank today: 703
Year-over-year increase in rank: 44 places
Meaning: "exalted one"
Today, when parents reach for a name of Irish origin, they're likely to go for Harper, Nora, Riley, Maeve, or Quinn, but in the '70s, Bridget outranked them all. But Bridget, as in French actress Bridgette Bardot (with a slightly different spelling), has been gaining in popularity again since 2022, so Harper may have to watch her back. It also fits in with the trend of mythological names, since it's the name of the Celtic goddess of wisdom.
Sabrina
SSA rank in the 1970s: 124
SSA rank today: 357
Year-over-year increase in rank: 39 places
Meaning: Latin name for the River Severn
In the '70s, when anybody mentioned the name Sabrina, everybody's mind jumped to Kate Jackson's character from the Charlie's Angels TV series. But the name's fortunes seem more closely tied to a different on-screen Sabrina: It hit the SSA list for the first time in 1954, the same year as the Billy Wilder film Sabrina, which starred Audrey Hepburn. The name didn't peak until 1997—just two years after a remake of the film came out with Harrison Ford, Greg Kinnear, Julia Ormond. There hasn't been another Sabrina remake since—just a teenage witch—but the name still has been growing in popularity for the past two years.
Amber
SSA rank in the 1970s: 65
SSA rank today: 541
Year-over-year increase in rank: 33 places
Meaning: fossilized tree resin
Amber—as in Amber Young, third child of musician Neil Young—hadn't yet hit its peak in the '70s. It continued to rise until 1986, when it was No. 13 in the list, but started falling in popularity after that—and dropping sharply after the "Amber alert" system debuted in the late-'90s. But with all manner of nature names rising in popularity, Amber is staging a resurgence, and it's risen 33 places in one year.
Holly
SSA rank in the 1970s: 58
SSA rank today: 419
Year-over-year increase in rank: 32 places
Meaning: "holly tree"
It's Audrey Hepburn again who sparked a crazy for Holly, as in The Price Is Right spokesmodel Holly Hallstrom. After she appeared as Holly Gollightly in Breakfast at Tiffany's in 1961, the name went on an upward trajectory that didn't stop until 1983. After that peak, it fell back to the middle of the SSA list, but has been showing up in the past few years in a big way: It's had six years of growth, rising nearly 100 places in that time.
Melissa
SSA rank in the 1970s: 3
SSA rank today: 378
Year-over-year increase in rank: 32 places
Meaning: "honeybee"
Melissa was so prevalent in the 1970s that there were two Melissas starring in the Little House on the Prairie TV series: Melissa Sue Anderson (left) and Melissa Gilbert (middle). It was a decade of Melissa, and the name hit its highest point in 1979, when it was the second most popular name in the country. The name couldn't maintain the hold, though, and it sank to a low ebb of No. 410 in 2023—but bounced back the next year, so it could be coming up again.
Cassandra
SSA rank in the 1970s: 152
SSA rank today: 613
Year-over-year increase in rank: 26 places
Meaning: "shining upon man"
In Greek myth, Cassandra—as in Cassandra Peterson, an actress better known for creating her iconic character Elivira, Mistress of the Dark—was able to see into the future, though her prophecies were never to be believed. So perhaps Cassandra can look ahead and see if the name's 26-place jump in rank between last year and the year before is a blip, or the start of a trend. In the '70s, Cassandra was wildly popular, and stayed a top-10 name throughout the decade, hitting the No. 2 spot in 1978 and 1979.
Nancy
SSA rank in the 1970s: 78
SSA rank today: 921
Year-over-year increase in rank: 21 places
Meaning: "grace"
In 2022, it looked like Nancy, like singer Nancy Sinatra, was going to fall off the SSA list. It was way down at No. 993, just eight spots away from tumbling off the list. Instead, Nancy turned its fortunes around and increased 72 places in the past two years. That's only fitting for a moniker that was a top-10 name between 1934 and 1955.
RELATED: 20 Beautiful Baby Names From the 1930s That Are Due for a Comeback
Veronica
SSA rank in the 1970s: 83
SSA rank today: 392
Year-over-year increase in rank: 19 places
Meaning: "bringer of victory"
From legendary girl-group leader Veronica Greenfield (aka Ronnie Spector) to the subject of Elvis Costello's hit song of the same name, Veronica seems to keep working its way into the musical spotlight. The name was rising throughout the '70s and peaked at No. 68 in 1983 (five years before Costello's song was released). Only time will tell if it has the juice to work its way into the limelight again.
Carmen
SSA rank in the 1970s: 162
SSA rank today: 416
Year-over-year increase in rank: 18 places
Meaning: "song"
Carmen, as in British actress Carmen Munroe, was just starting to dip in the '70s. It hit its peak in 1968, when it was No. 141, and spent the '70s hovering between No. 150 and No. 170. That's not dramatically different from where it is today—it's fallen, sure, but is still in the top half of the SSA list—so this is name that has some consistency behind it, as opposed to one that reaches high heights and burns out.
Meredith
SSA rank in the 1970s: 179
SSA rank today: 192
Year-over-year increase in rank: 17 places
Meaning: "great ruler"
Prior to 1954, the name Meredith, as in actress Meredith Baxter, ranked on the SSA list for both girls and boys. But when the name hit its peak—No. 140 in 1981—it was on the girls' list only, and has only ranked on the girls' list from there on out. Today, it's not wildly far from its peak, and, after seeing five years of respective growth, it might get back there eventually.
Looking for more great baby names?
Check out these Good Housekeeping lists:
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Marisa (she/her) has covered all things parenting, from the postpartum period through the empty nest, for Good Housekeeping since 2018; previously, she wrote about parents and families at Parents and Working Mother. She lives with her toy-collecting husband and daughter in Brooklyn, where she can be found helping out her team at bar trivia or posting about movies on Twitter and Bluesky.
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