These vintage baby names are back in a huge way this year

Baby names come and go in cycles, and whether parents are looking to keep with the times or avoid the trends entirely, it helps to know which names are on the rise. Some families like names that have that old, mid-century or turn-of-the-century feel, while others are looking for more of-the-moment names. Either way, it helps to know which older names are cycling back into fashion.

The Social Security Administration (SSA) keeps track of baby names going back more than 100 years, so it's the foremost authority in baby-name trends. The agency has just released its list of the top 1,000 boy names and the top 1,000 girl names in the United States — along with the names that have increased and decreased in popularity by the biggest margins. By combing through these fast-climbers, it's easy to see which vintage baby names — which, for our purposes, are baby names that reached their peak more than 20 years ago — are making a comeback. Parents looking for something with a cool, retro feel can try these on for size.

Rocky

Year of peak: 1955SSA rank today: 657 (+231 places) Meaning: "rock"

Most people associate the name Rocky with the '70s, and the boxing franchise of the same name, but the moniker had actually hit its stride decades before (closer to when the real-life Rocky Marciano was hitting the ring). It was biggest in the 1950s, when Rocky Colavito was out on the baseball diamond and Rocky Anderson was out on the football field. Today, Rocky is one of the fastest-climbing names for boys, having risen in rank 231 spots between last year and the year before.

Marjorie

Year of peak: 1923

SSA rank today: 822 (+429 places)Meaning: "pearl"

Marjorie is a name that peaked in the '20s, back when Marjorie Merriweather Post was making headlines as a businesswoman, philanthropist and socialite (and namesake of the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Maryland). Today, Marjorie is the third fastest-climbing name for girls (behind two variants of the same name, Ailany and Aylani). It's part of a trend of girls' names ending in -ie, like Scottie and Elodie, which are also on the list of fast risers.

Heath

Year of peak: 1974

SSA rank today: 848 (+205 places)Meaning: "land of heather"

Whether Heathcliff from Wuthering Heights, Lee Majors's character from the '60s Western The Big Valley or 2000s heartthrob Heath Ledger come to mind first, the name Heath has a rugged and romantic quality to it that's right on-trend. It's actually The Big Valley that led to the name's peak in the '70s, so it makes sense that the name would be coming back now, when Western/cowboy names are on the rise again.

Lettie

Year of peak: 1900

SSA rank today: 936 (+197 places)

Meaning: "joy"

The name Lettie means "joy" or "gladness," as embodied here by Lady Lettie Lygon, daughter of the Earl of Beauchamp, who's traveling by carriage to a wedding with her brother. In this case, Lettie was actually short for Lettice, but it's often used as a nickname for Letitia. Today, parents are opting for Lettie over Letitia in much bigger numbers, since Letitia hasn't made the SSA list of the top 1,000 baby girl names since 1982. That's because Lettie sits on the corner of two trends: the first is using nicknames as first/full names, and the second is choosing names that end in -ie, like Marjorie above.

Abner

Year of peak: 1901

SSA rank today: 837 (+160 places)

Meaning: "father of light"

You can thank General Abner Doubleday for the invention of the sport of baseball — and, possibly, the peak of the name Abner, which happened in the early 1900s, shortly after Doubleday's death in 1893. Abner fell off the SSA list entirely in 1938 — possibly because of the associations with the Al Capp comic strip Lil' Abner, whose main character is known for being dim-witted — but the name came back to the list in 2020 and has been rising ever since.

Billie

Year of peak: 1930

SSA rank today: 694 (+171 places)

Meaning: "resolute protector"

Billie is a name for singers, from jazz artist Billie Holiday to today's Billie Eilish. Like Lettie, it's another super-trendy nickname-as-first-name that ends in -ie. Parents who like the way it sounds can also consider Andie and Charlie, which are also both names that, like Billie, have a unisex quality to them.

Benny

Year of peak: 1939

SSA rank today: 890 (+154 places)

Meaning: "son of the right hand"

The name Benjamin is incredibly popular, and has been a top-20 name since 2011. But it's also slipping in rank, having hit its peak in 2018, when it was No. 6. Benny, on the other hand, stands on its own — and is on its way up. And, with role models like famed bandleader Benny Goodman or comedian Jack Benny, who were popular around the time when the name hit its peak in the '30s, why wouldn't it be?

Micah

Year of peak: 1998

SSA rank today: 841 (+169 places)

Meaning: "who is like the Lord"

The name Micah is on the rise for boy boys and girls, but the girls, as in Olympic swimmer Micah Lawrence Sumrall, are growing by leaps and bounds. Micah is a girls' name of a more recent vintage, having peaked in 1998, possibly with parents looking for an alternative to Michaela. Parents who like the name but want to be more unique can opt for Maika, as in actress Maika Monroe, which hasn't hit the SSA list yet.

Agustin

Year of peak: 2001

SSA rank today: 865 (+153 places)

Meaning: "venerable"

Agustin, as in tennis player Agustin Calleri, is also one of the more recent names on this list: Though you can find it on the SSA list throughout the 20th century, the name hit its peak in 2001, just barely meeting our definition of "vintage." Agustin is one of a few "Gus" names that are on the list of fast-risers; others include Augustus (up 78 places), Augustine (up 71 places) and August (up 16 places).

Salome

Year of peak: 1903

SSA rank today: 952 (+161 places)

Meaning: "peace"

Salome has an infamous story in the Bible, where she demanded the head of John the Baptist on a platter. Perhaps that was enough to keep people away, since the name Salome, as in actress Salome Jens, had only a brief run at the bottom of the SSA list between 1900 and 1908. It stayed off the list for more than 100 years, only to re-emerge this year at No. 952. It seems parents are overlooking the violent Biblical association and locking in to the name's original meaning, which is peace.

Darian

Year of peak: 1994

SSA rank today: 901 (+147 places)

Meaning: "wealth"

Darian, as in quarterback Darian Hagan, is a good choice for parents who are looking for a name that's old but not too old. Darian only made the SSA list for the first time in the mid-1960s, and then slowly climbed until it reached a peak in the mid-1990s. It never really left the list, just decreased in popularity — until last year, when it jumped up nearly 150 places in rank between last year and the year before.

Angie

Year of peak: 1975

SSA rank today: 592 (+147 places)

Meaning: "angel"

Angie Dickinson won a Golden Globe in 1975 for her role in Police Woman — could that show have been responsible for the name Angie's mid-'70s peak? Angie has always hung around on the SSA list — usually behind the more popular Angela, which is currently at No. 282 — but, due to the popularity of those -ie names, it's taking big jumps up the chart again.

Carlo

Year of peak: 1923

SSA rank today: 914 (+146 places)

Meaning: "free man"

The name Carlo, as in Count Carlo Zanardi Landi, who planned the salvage operation for the sunken Lusitania, has an international feel to it, possibly owing to its association with Monte Carlo. Carlo was a mainstay on the list throughout the 20th century, but had a spotty record of making the list in the 2010s and fell off entirely after 2011. Now, it's back — but how long will it stick around this time?

Winona

Year of peak: 1931

SSA rank today: 738 (+142 places)

Meaning: "firstborn daughter"

The fact that Winona is of Sioux origin, along with its association with people like country singer Wynonna Judd and Justified character Winona Hawkins, gives it a country-and-Western flavor that's on-trend right now. But while you'd think women like Judd or actress Winona Ryder would've made this name a hit in the '90s, it actually didn't make the list at all in that decade; it was off the list entirely between 1957 and 2022. Instead, it peaked in the '30s, the era of celebrity hula dancer Winona Love.

Darwin

Year of peak: 1938

SSA rank today: 839 (+130 places)

Meaning: "dear friend"

British naturalist Charles Darwin died decades before the name hit its peak in 1938, but he's still certainly the most famous man to carry the name Darwin. But will that change in the future? Darwin has always had a place toward the bottom of the SSA list, but, between last year and the year before, it jumped more than 100 places in rank, which could signal a meteoric ascent.

Rebekah

Year of peak: 1982

SSA rank today: 877 (+128 places)

Meaning: "to bind"

Rebecca is currently the more popular version of this name, sitting at No. 342 on the SSA list. But that spelling has been slowly, steadily falling since it hit a peak in 1974. Rebekah, spelled like Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome actress Rebekah Elmaloglou, is the more obscure spelling variant, but it's the one that starting to climb.

Casper

Year of peak: 1907

SSA rank today: 879 (+128 places)

Meaning: "bringer of treasure"

Like Abner, Casper, as in boxer Caspar DeLeon (who spells his name slightly differently), may have been done in by a cartoon: The name fell off the list in 1933, shortly before the appearance of Casper in The Friendly Ghost in 1945. The name stayed off the list ever since, only reemerging in 2024, possibly as an alternative to Jasper, which is currently No. 133 on the SSA list (down slightly from No. 122 the year before).

Veda

Year of peak: 1901

SSA rank today: 692 (+123 places)

Meaning: "knowledge"

People may remember Veda from Bonanza actress Veda Ann Borg — could that Western association be what's driving its rise in popularity today? (So far, there's no movement for Borg's character's name, Beulah, but we'll see if that re-enters the list any time soon.) Veda fell off the SSA list after 1960, but came back in 2015 and has been going strong ever since.

Chris

Year of peak: 1966

SSA rank today: 650 (+124 places)

Meaning: "bearing Christ"

Today, the name Chris is everywhere, especially on the big screen, where you can see Hollywood Chrises Pine, Evans, Hemsworth and Pratt in any number of blockbusters. Chris has not yet achieved enough velocity to overtake Christopher, which is currently sitting at No. 61 on the SSA list, but there are enough celebrities who go by Chris that the name is gaining steam. Previously, the name Chris hit a peak in 1966, when musicians like Chris Montez, Chris Barber and Kris Kristofferson were making their mark.

Gwen

Year of peak: 1959

SSA rank today: 698 (+119 places)

Meaning: "white circle"

Gwen, as in half of the dynamic dance duo of Bob Fosse and Gwen Verdon, is also a member of the nicknames-as-full-names club, since it could be short for Gwendolyn, Gwyneth or Guinevere. The name hit its peak in 1959, when Verdon was treading the boards, but fell off the list by 1982. It re-emerged in 2013 — thank you, Gwen Stefani — and has been there ever since, but last year was its best showing since it returned to the list.

Jones

Year of peak: 1901

SSA rank today: 849 (+116 places)

Meaning: "God is gracious"

It's easy to find examples of people whose last names are Jones — from Monkee Davy Jones to American legend Casey Jones to all the Joneses in-between — but it's harder to find examples of Jones as a first name. This is true even during the period when using surnames as first names was at its hottest, driving names like Cooper and Jackson up the list. Still, it was a thing: In 1901, when Jones was at its peak, it was No. 547 on the SSA list of the top 1,000 names. Jones fell off the list in the '30s, and didn't re-emerge until 2020, after a couple of celebrities — including football player Tono Romo and influencer Rocky Barnes — named their kids Jones.

Rosalyn

Year of peak: 1952

SSA rank today: 888 (+118 places)

Meaning: "beautiful rose"

Rosalyn and its variants are great names for parents who are interested in the sciences, since there are so many great namesakes, from Nobel winner Rosalyn Yalow to DNA researcher Rosalind Franklin. (It's a good one for fans of the humanities, too, since Rosaline is Romeo's crush before Juliet.) Rosalyn was most popular in 1952, but dipped in the '70s fell off the list in the '80s, when Rosemary was on its way up. It returned in 2014 and has been hanging on ever since.