Girl Names That Were Once Popular
Past favorite girl names reveal how naming trends have changed across generations.
Names like Betty, Virginia, Edith, and Irene were familiar choices in earlier decades. Later, Susan, Pamela, Nancy, and Cheryl became popular with a new generation of parents.
More recent favorites include Amanda, Nicole, Kayla, Jasmine, and Alexa. These names show that a past favorite doesn't have to sound old-fashioned. Some have only recently dropped outside the top 100.
Other names, such as Anna, Cora, Catherine, and Margaret, have long histories that reach beyond their periods of popularity in the United States.
What Makes a Girl Name a Past Favorite?
Our Past Favorites collection uses U.S. Social Security Administration baby name records from 1880 through 2025.
To qualify, a girl name must have entered the U.S. top 100 more than once, with at least one break between its popularity runs. All those runs must have ended before 2025.
This makes Past Favorites different from Revived Favorites, which also returned to the top 100 but remain on the list today.
A past favorite isn't necessarily rare or forgotten. It simply no longer ranks among the 100 most popular names for girls.
Could These Girl Names Become Popular Again?
Baby name trends often change from one generation to the next. Names that once seemed outdated can become appealing again as parents rediscover them.
Names like Hazel, Violet, Clara, and Eleanor have already returned to the top 100 after earlier periods of popularity.
Could names like Flora, Lottie, Sylvia, or Rosemary follow a similar path? Their histories offer a glimpse of styles that may appeal to future generations of parents.
Explore each name's popularity chart to see when it reached its peak, how long it remained popular, and when it dropped out of the top 100.
Explore More Girl Name Favorites
Explore Revived Girl Names for names that returned to popularity, or Rising Girl Names for choices climbing the U.S. charts in 2025.
You can also browse Established Girl Names and Century-Long Favorite Girl Names to discover names that remained popular for decades.