Putting a number to the name:
Statistics on Jennifer
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Whoosh.
Like a wave, the name Jennifer flooded in as a generation in the 1970s.
When we started school, classes included multiple Jennifers. As we grew, so did the phenomenon. The numbers are staggering as each year's Jennifer births increased. Whoosh. Jennifer actually means "white wave," which is all too apropos considering the white majority in the United States. The name, which is derived from Guienevere and Genevieve, was used in both German and English. Its source is Gwenhwyfar, which is a Welsh name that means "pure and yielding." Jennifer's introduction to the United States in popularity and usage came very recently though. Not until the 1940s did the name Jennifer even hit the rankings of "Social Security's Top 1,000 Baby Names for Girls." Before then, Jennie was used, but only in limited numbers. |
| In 1967, the name shot up
the charts and entered the top 10. By 1970, it was the most common name
for baby girls. According to sampling figures from the Social Security
Administration, more than 580,000 babies were named Jennifer in the 1970s
alone.
Jennifer remained the most popular until 1985, when the names Jessica and Ashley overtook it. However, for 15 years, baby girls were named Jennifer twice as often as any other name and babies named Jennifer made up 2 percent to 3 percent of all new babies. Jennifer remained among the top 10 until 1994. The most recent statistics for popularity rank Jennifer as the 14th most popular name for baby girls. The name simply won't wash away. Unlike other popular names that have a history of popularity like Mary (for obvious biblical reasons), Jennifer came out of nowhere. Whoosh. Like a wave, the Jenny-ration began.
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Distributions from the Social Security Administration
