America Has A New Leading Lady

(August, 2009)

There's a new leading lady topping the A-list. Her name is Emma.

Among all girls born in the United States last year, Emma was the most popular name. Isabella was second. Emily, which had been the most popular girl’s name for 12 years, was third.

The top boy’s name is Jacob for the 10th year in a row. He is followed by Michael and Ethan.

America's most popular baby names are based on Social Security card applications for newborn babies. Each year, Social Security publishes the top 1,000 baby names. Lists of popular baby names going all the way back to 1880 are available online at www.socialsecurity.gov/babynames.

The top ten names for girls born in 2008 are: Emma, Isabella, Emily, Madison, Ava, Olivia, Sophia, Abigail, Elizabeth and Chloe.

The top ten names for boys born in 2008 are: Jacob, Michael, Ethan, Joshua, Daniel, Alexander, Anthony, William, Christopher and Matthew.

To learn more about the relationship between pop culture and popular baby names, read our press release online at www.socialsecurity.gov/pressoffice/pr/baby-names2008-pr.htm.

To see where your own name ranks on the list, visit www.socialsecurity.gov/babynames. Also featured are links to information about Social Security numbers for children, benefits for children, and what every parent should know about Social Security.

Ginny Jordan is a Public Affairs Specialist for the Social Security Administration. Her weekly column on all things Social Security appears in the Sunday Edition of the Sun-Sentinel.

Ginny has agreed to let us reprint her articles here for your convenience.

Thank you Ginny!