First-letter trends since 1955
This guide takes the 7 decade snapshots in the committed SSA data — 1955, 1965, 1975, 1985, 1995, 2005 and 2015 — plus the latest year, 2025, and asks one question of each: of all the births covered by that year's top 200 names for one sex, what share went to names beginning with each letter of the alphabet? The answer is two tables of 26 rows and 8 columns, one for boys and one for girls, followed by a plain reading of what moved between 1955 and 2025. Every percentage is computed at build time from the committed files; nothing numeric on this page is typed in by hand.
The tables describe first letters, not names. A letter's share rises when the names beginning with it collect more of the births inside the top 200, whichever names those are. The guide states what the shares show and stops there: the data records how many babies received each spelling in each year, not why, and this site does not guess at reasons.
How the shares are computed
Each decade snapshot in the data is a single SSA year — the 1950s (1955), the 1960s (1965), the 1970s (1975), the 1980s (1985), the 1990s (1995), the 2000s (2005) and the 2010s (2015) — holding the top 200 names per sex, as the decade snapshots guide explains. For every snapshot, the engine groups those 200 names by first letter, adds up their birth counts, and divides each letter's total by the births in the whole list. The 26 shares in one column therefore sum to 100 percent, and a letter with no name inside the top 200 shows 0.0%.
The latest year is committed to a deeper 1,000 names per sex. To keep the final column comparable, it is computed over only the top 200 of the 2025 list — the same depth as every snapshot. That column is therefore not the same figure as the top-1,000 share quoted on each letter page: the letter pages measure a letter against the full 2025 list, while this page measures it against the first 200 names of that list.
The list totals differ by year. The 200 most-registered boy names cover 1,800,948 births in 1955 and 897,800 in 2025; for girls the two totals are 1,547,892 and 706,625. Because every cell is a share of its own column's total, the columns stay comparable even though those totals move. Shares are shown to one decimal place. The changes quoted below are differences in percentage points between the 1955 column and the 2025 column, computed from the unrounded values, so a quoted change can differ from the subtraction of two rounded cells by a tenth of a point.
Boy names: first-letter share of the top 200, 1955–2025
| Letter | 1955 | 1965 | 1975 | 1985 | 1995 | 2005 | 2015 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 3.0% | 3.8% | 5.4% | 8.2% | 11.0% | 11.7% | 10.8% | 10.6% |
| B | 3.1% | 4.3% | 6.2% | 6.7% | 5.6% | 5.3% | 5.5% | 4.2% |
| C | 4.5% | 5.0% | 8.6% | 8.6% | 10.1% | 9.9% | 8.7% | 7.2% |
| D | 11.9% | 11.3% | 8.0% | 8.2% | 8.0% | 6.7% | 4.6% | 4.2% |
| E | 2.4% | 2.9% | 2.9% | 2.3% | 3.2% | 5.6% | 6.5% | 9.0% |
| F | 1.5% | 1.1% | 0.6% | 0.5% | 0.5% | 0.4% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| G | 5.7% | 4.1% | 2.4% | 1.9% | 1.7% | 2.8% | 3.5% | 3.1% |
| H | 1.5% | 0.9% | 0.6% | 0.2% | 0.9% | 1.6% | 2.7% | 3.4% |
| I | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.4% | 1.1% | 2.2% | 2.5% | 1.9% |
| J | 16.2% | 17.0% | 22.4% | 22.1% | 19.9% | 19.5% | 17.0% | 13.5% |
| K | 3.7% | 4.7% | 3.2% | 3.5% | 2.9% | 2.2% | 2.9% | 0.9% |
| L | 3.4% | 2.1% | 1.3% | 1.3% | 1.7% | 4.2% | 8.1% | 10.6% |
| M | 9.0% | 10.0% | 10.9% | 10.1% | 8.3% | 6.5% | 7.4% | 7.3% |
| N | 0.5% | 0.4% | 1.1% | 2.5% | 3.7% | 4.4% | 4.0% | 4.5% |
| O | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.2% | 0.4% | 1.0% | 2.1% | 2.5% |
| P | 3.4% | 3.6% | 2.6% | 2.5% | 1.9% | 1.4% | 1.1% | 0.6% |
| Q | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| R | 14.6% | 11.8% | 8.6% | 7.4% | 4.6% | 3.2% | 2.7% | 3.4% |
| S | 5.0% | 5.8% | 6.3% | 5.2% | 4.3% | 3.6% | 3.0% | 3.9% |
| T | 5.4% | 7.0% | 5.3% | 4.7% | 6.0% | 3.8% | 2.3% | 3.8% |
| U | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| V | 0.5% | 0.7% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.5% | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.4% |
| W | 4.8% | 3.7% | 2.8% | 2.2% | 1.9% | 2.0% | 2.9% | 4.2% |
| X | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 0.4% | 0.4% | 0.4% |
| Y | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Z | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.8% | 1.8% | 0.9% | 0.6% | 0.3% |
| Births in the top 200 | 1,800,948 | 1,585,257 | 1,251,925 | 1,480,716 | 1,383,293 | 1,302,574 | 1,121,667 | 897,800 |
| Letters with a name listed | 19 | 19 | 22 | 22 | 23 | 23 | 22 | 23 |
J holds the largest share of boys' births in every column: 16.2% in 1955, a peak of 22.4% in 1975, and 13.5% in 2025. The next-largest shares in 2025 belong to L (10.6%) and A (10.6%); together the 3 largest letters account for 34.7% of the births in the 2025 column, against 42.7% for the 3 largest in 1955, which were J (16.2%), R (14.6%) and D (11.9%).
Measured from 1955 to 2025, the largest rises in share for boys belong to A (3.0% to 10.6%, up 7.6 points), L (3.4% to 10.6%, up 7.2 points) and E (2.4% to 9.0%, up 6.6 points). In name terms, A went from 10 names inside the top 200 in 1955 to 26 names in 2025. The largest falls belong to R (14.6% to 3.4%, down 11.2 points), D (11.9% to 4.2%, down 7.7 points) and K (3.7% to 0.9%, down 2.8 points); R had 21 names in the 1955 top 200 and 9 names in 2025.
Across the whole alphabet, 11 letters gained share for boys between the two columns, 12 lost share, and 3 are unchanged — in every case because the letter has no name in the top 200 of either year. Q, U and Y show 0.0% in every column of the boys' table: no boy name beginning with those letters reaches the top 200 in any of the 8 years. I, O, X and Z start at 0.0% in 1955 and are above zero in 2025, and no letter goes the other way from above zero in 1955 to 0.0% in 2025. Counting letters with at least one name in the top 200, the boys' columns use 19 letters in 1955 and 23 in 2025.
Girl names: first-letter share of the top 200, 1955–2025
| Letter | 1955 | 1965 | 1975 | 1985 | 1995 | 2005 | 2015 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A | 3.0% | 5.7% | 12.3% | 16.6% | 15.8% | 18.8% | 20.2% | 16.1% |
| B | 5.7% | 3.9% | 2.4% | 3.5% | 6.0% | 3.2% | 2.8% | 1.4% |
| C | 9.6% | 9.1% | 8.3% | 8.2% | 7.5% | 4.7% | 5.5% | 6.9% |
| D | 13.8% | 8.7% | 4.2% | 3.1% | 3.0% | 2.2% | 0.8% | 1.3% |
| E | 2.4% | 2.0% | 3.3% | 5.2% | 5.9% | 8.4% | 11.2% | 15.0% |
| F | 0.3% | 0.3% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.2% | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.2% |
| G | 2.0% | 1.0% | 0.5% | 0.2% | 1.3% | 3.8% | 2.8% | 3.3% |
| H | 0.5% | 0.9% | 3.5% | 2.9% | 3.9% | 3.3% | 3.8% | 3.7% |
| I | 0.2% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 2.4% | 3.1% | 4.1% |
| J | 9.6% | 8.5% | 11.5% | 12.3% | 8.4% | 6.8% | 2.4% | 2.7% |
| K | 6.3% | 9.5% | 9.4% | 9.8% | 10.4% | 7.5% | 3.8% | 1.8% |
| L | 7.3% | 10.0% | 5.3% | 6.6% | 3.4% | 4.7% | 6.8% | 8.3% |
| M | 9.6% | 8.7% | 11.2% | 9.6% | 11.7% | 12.1% | 9.0% | 8.0% |
| N | 2.1% | 1.2% | 2.5% | 3.3% | 2.2% | 2.9% | 3.2% | 3.2% |
| O | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.7% | 1.7% | 2.4% | 2.7% |
| P | 6.6% | 4.6% | 1.4% | 0.7% | 0.8% | 1.0% | 3.0% | 2.5% |
| Q | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.4% | 0.4% |
| R | 4.6% | 4.5% | 4.1% | 3.3% | 3.1% | 2.5% | 3.1% | 3.1% |
| S | 10.1% | 10.7% | 9.8% | 8.6% | 10.1% | 9.2% | 9.4% | 9.0% |
| T | 2.5% | 7.2% | 7.6% | 3.4% | 3.0% | 1.7% | 0.8% | 0.2% |
| U | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| V | 2.7% | 1.6% | 1.5% | 1.9% | 2.1% | 1.8% | 2.9% | 3.7% |
| W | 0.8% | 1.2% | 0.8% | 0.5% | 0.3% | 0.0% | 0.3% | 0.9% |
| X | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.3% | 0.2% |
| Y | 0.4% | 0.6% | 0.4% | 0.0% | 0.1% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Z | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% | 0.8% | 1.6% | 1.3% |
| Births in the top 200 | 1,547,892 | 1,311,258 | 971,296 | 1,148,764 | 1,051,421 | 925,829 | 828,605 | 706,625 |
| Letters with a name listed | 21 | 20 | 20 | 19 | 23 | 21 | 24 | 24 |
The leading letter for girls changes across the columns: D in 1955 (13.8%), S in 1965 (10.7%) and A in every column from 1975 (12.3%) through 2025 (16.1%). The single largest cell in the girls' table is A in 2015, at 20.2%. The next-largest shares in 2025 belong to E (15.0%) and S (9.0%); together the 3 largest letters account for 40.1% of the births in the 2025 column, against 33.5% for the 3 largest in 1955, which were D (13.8%), S (10.1%) and J (9.6%).
Measured from 1955 to 2025, the largest rises in share for girls belong to A (3.0% to 16.1%, up 13.0 points), E (2.4% to 15.0%, up 12.6 points) and I (0.2% to 4.1%, up 4.0 points). In name terms, A went from 12 names inside the top 200 in 1955 to 34 names in 2025. The largest falls belong to D (13.8% to 1.3%, down 12.6 points), J (9.6% to 2.7%, down 6.9 points) and K (6.3% to 1.8%, down 4.5 points); D had 15 names in the 1955 top 200 and 3 names in 2025.
Across the whole alphabet, 13 letters gained share for girls between the two columns, 12 lost share, and 1 is unchanged — in that case because the letter has no name in the top 200 of either year. U shows 0.0% in every column of the girls' table: no girl name beginning with that letter reaches the top 200 in any of the 8 years. O, Q, X and Z start at 0.0% in 1955 and are above zero in 2025; Y goes the other way, from above zero in 1955 to 0.0% in 2025. Counting letters with at least one name in the top 200, the girls' columns use 21 letters in 1955 and 24 in 2025.
The two tables side by side
Reading the boys' and girls' tables against each other, the letters that gained share for both sexes between 1955 and 2025 are A, E, H, I, L, N, O, X and Z (9 letters); the letters that lost share for both are D, F, J, K, M, P, R, S and T (9 letters); and 5 moved in opposite directions: B (up for boys, down for girls), C (up for boys, down for girls), G (down for boys, up for girls), V (down for boys, up for girls) and W (down for boys, up for girls). The remaining 3 — Q, U and Y — are unchanged on at least one of the two tables, in each case because the letter has no name in that sex's top 200 in either year.
The largest rise on either table is A for girls, up 13.0 points from 3.0% to 16.1%. The largest fall is D for girls, down 12.6 points from 13.8% to 1.3%. The largest single cell anywhere in the two tables is J for boys in 1975, at 22.4%.
In 2025 the leading letter is J (13.5%) for boys and A (16.1%) for girls — a different letter on each table. The boys' 2025 column spreads its births across 23 letters, with the 3 largest holding 34.7%; the girls' column uses 24 letters, with the 3 largest holding 40.1%. In 1955 the equivalent figures were 19 letters and 42.7% for boys, 21 letters and 33.5% for girls.
What a share can and cannot tell you
A share here is a share of the top 200, not of all births. Names ranked below 200 in a year are outside the committed depth for that snapshot, so a letter whose names sit deeper in the list contributes nothing to its cell however many such names exist. The 2025 letter pages reach up to 50 names per initial with the overall rank of each, so a letter at 0.0% in the 2025 column can still carry a populated page there. For example, the boys' table shows 0.0% for Q in 2025, yet the boy names starting with Q page lists 39 names, the best ranked of them Quinn at #467 with 663 births. On the girls' side, U shows 0.0% in 2025 while its letter page lists 32 names, led by Unique at #2,456 with 73 births.
Two SSA rules travel with every cell. Names given fewer than 5 times in a year to one sex are excluded from the source files, so the deepest ranks in any year are already a filtered view. And spelling variants are separate entries: the shares count each spelling under its own first letter, so a name that exists in both a C spelling and a K spelling adds to two different rows. Nothing here merges spellings, and this site does not compute a merged figure. The shares are also per sex because the SSA's ranks are per sex: a name used for both boys and girls counts toward the boys' table through its boys' count and toward the girls' table through its girls' count.
Finally, the years are exactly the years. "The 1950s" in this guide means 1955 and nothing else, and a letter's share in one snapshot says nothing about the years between snapshots, which are not in the committed files: the tables show endpoints, not the path between them.
Every letter page
Each row of both tables links to the matching letter page, and the two strips below reach all 52 of them. Each page lists up to 50 names for that initial in 2025 with the SSA's overall rank and birth count for every name, so the 2025 column above can be checked name by name. The cut is never padded: in the 2025 data, Q for boys carries 39, Q for girls carries 34 and U for girls carries 32, and every other initial carries a full 50. The full 2025 top-100 tables are on the boy names and girl names pages.
Boy names by letter
Girl names by letter
Frequently asked questions
What does a first-letter share measure?
For one sex and one year, it is the births received by names beginning with that letter, divided by all births covered by that year's top 200 names, times 100. In 2025 the largest share belongs to J (13.5%) for boys and A (16.1%) for girls.
Why is the 2025 column computed over the top 200 rather than the full top 1,000?
The decade snapshots are committed 200 names deep per sex, so the 2025 column uses only the top 200 of that year's 1,000-name list to keep every column at the same depth. A letter's share of the full 2025 top 1,000 is a different figure and is reported on that letter's own page.
Which letters changed the most between 1955 and 2025?
For boys the largest rise is A (3.0% to 10.6%, up 7.6 points) and the largest fall is R (14.6% to 3.4%, down 11.2 points). For girls the largest rise is A (3.0% to 16.1%, up 13.0 points) and the largest fall is D (13.8% to 1.3%, down 12.6 points). The data records the shares; it does not record a cause, and this guide does not supply one.
Why does a letter show 0.0%?
A 0.0% cell means no name beginning with that letter sits inside that year's top 200 for that sex. It is not evidence that the letter went unused: names ranked below 200 are outside the committed depth for the snapshots, and the SSA omits any name given fewer than 5 times in a year. In the boys' table Q, U and Y are at 0.0% in every column; in the girls' table U is.
Are spelling variants merged into one letter?
No. The SSA counts every spelling as its own entry and this site preserves that, so each spelling contributes to the row of its own first letter. A name that exists in both a C spelling and a K spelling adds to two different rows, and no merged figure is computed anywhere on this site.
Why these particular years?
1955, 1965, 1975, 1985, 1995, 2005 and 2015 are the single-year decade snapshots committed in the site's data, each holding the top 200 names per sex, and 2025 is the latest year in the SSA archive the site was built from. Years between the snapshots are not in the committed files, so the tables make no claim about them.
Every figure on this page is recomputed on each build from the committed SSA files; if the data changes, the tables and the sentences change together or the build fails. The rules behind the ranks, counts, and snapshot years are on the methodology page, and the other guides are listed on the guides index.
Source: every name, rank, and count on this page comes from the U.S. Social Security Administration's national baby-names dataset (1955–2025 data, from Social Security card applications). It is public-domain U.S. government data; names given fewer than 5 times in a year are excluded by the SSA, spelling variants are counted separately, and the data covers U.S. births only. Full caveats on the methodology page.