In the mid-1980s, when we were beginning to conceptualize our first book, Beyond Jennifer & Jason, the most popular names were, well, Jennifer (42,637 of them born in 1985 alone) and Jason, as well as Jessica, Michael (a whopping 64,852 of them—no wonder  we run into so many 25-year-old Mikes) and Matthews, Ashleys and Amandas, Megans and Melissas.

　　Over the entire decade of those ancient eighties– the era of Cabbage Patch Dolls and Punky Brewster, the moonwalk and the Material Girl—the top three girls’ names were Jessica (469,000). Jennifer (440,000) and Amanda (369,000), while for the boys it was Michael (663,000— that’s over half a million, in case you hadn’t noticed), Christopher (555,000) and Matthew (458,000)—rounding them off to the nearest hundred.

　　In the quarter century (!) that has passed since 1985, we’ve seen some very different naming patterns emerge.  At that time, there were very few vowel-starting names, except for those A-girls mentioned above, the perennial Elizabeth and the emerging Emily.  Hardly a flower name in the bunch, minimal celebrity impact, Mary still in the Top 35, the boys’ list showing little signs of new life, sticking with Old and New Testament favorites and English classics. Not an _aden-_ending name in the Top 500—though Braden had already popped up at 583, just below Benny.

　　What’s particularly interesting to look at from today’s perspective is not so much the new names that were emerging or those that are still with us, but the older ones that were still hanging on in the 1985 Top 1000, and have now completely dropped off.  

　　Here are some that might be ready for their encores. What do you think?

　　GIRLS

　　BERNADETTE

　　BRIGITTE

　　CONSTANCE

　　COLETTE

　　DELIA

　　GENEVA

　　GEORGINA

　　GINGER

　　JILL

　　LISETTE

　　LORETTA

　　LOUISE

　　LUCINDA

　　MAI

　　MARIAN

　　MARIEL

　　MARJORIE

　　OLGA

　　PATRICE

　　PAULINE

　　PENNY

　　PORTIA

　　ROCHELLE

　　ROSALIE

　　ROSALINDA

　　ROXANNA

　　SALLY

　　SHIRA

　　SIOBHAN

　　SONJA

　　SUSANNA

　　VALENCIA

　　VIOLETA

　　BOYS

　　AMOS

　　ARCHIE

　　BRANNON

　　DOMINGO

　　EDMOND

　　ELISEO

　　FEDERICO

　　FLOYD

　　FRED

　　HANK

　　ISIAS

　　JED

　　KIRBY

　　LAZARO

　　LEIF

　　LOWELL

　　LUTHER

　　MACK

　　MORRIS

　　PERCY

　　PETE

　　RUFUS

　　TREMAINE

　　VINCE

　　VIRGIL

　　VITO

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