Active discussions

Please or to access all these features

Talk
Baby names

Find baby name inspiration and advice on the Mumsnet Baby Names forum.

Original poster

1960s-1990s Girl Names

104 replies

TurnaPage · 20/08/2026 05:53

I'm looking for girl names that were common between the 1960s and 1990s that I may not have considered yet. An example would be names like Joanna and Stephanie. Majority of the modern popular names just don't do it for me. I want a name that feels familiar. A name where I have actually met an adult woman called that.

OP posts:
Are your children’s vaccines up to date?
Set a reminder
New posts on this thread. Refresh page
PharreIIHappy · 22/08/2026 13:14

Jennifer
Alison
Phillipa
Sue
Deborah
Annabel
Shirley
Deborah
Julie
Jane
Cathy

YourWinter · 21/08/2026 22:28

Some girls I was at school with through the 1960s:
Linda
Suzanne
Marion
Janette
Jane
Carol
Frances
Carolyn
Jennifer
Fiona
Serena
Gail
Heather
Sandra
Lorraine
Christine
Mandy
Kim
Kathryn
Beverley
Patricia
Noreen
Anne
Anita
Melanie
Dawn
Penelope
Prudence
Nicola
Bridget
Antoinette
Pearl
Diane
Deborah
Denise
Rosemary
Valerie
Yvonne
Gillian
Wendy
Sally
Helen
Julia
Samantha
Teresa
Margaret
Lynn
Lesley
Diane
Jackie
Irene
Annette
Robin
Veronica
Elaine
Isobel

Viviennemary · 21/08/2026 22:16

Linda
Sharon
Tracey

No hope we don't go back to these days

DaysIllRememberAllMyLife · 21/08/2026 21:56

Katrina,
Carly
Adele
Lisa
Maria
Danielle
Christina
Fay
Melanie

wanga · 21/08/2026 21:51

Nina
Brandy
Amanda
Katie
Sharon
Zoe
Kendra
Heather
Ginny
Bernice
Elaine
Lyndsey
Megan
Orla
Penny
June
Melissa
Cindy
Esther
Natalie
Anna
Francis
Michaela
Robyn
Tilly

Ritasueandbobtoo9 · 21/08/2026 21:43

Sarah, a gazillion Sarah’s, Sara’s

Ritasueandbobtoo9 · 21/08/2026 21:42

Dawn (lots)
Maria
Elaine
Lucy
Jodie
Josey

Ritasueandbobtoo9 · 21/08/2026 21:41

Clare, Claire
Emma
Hayley
Jillian (Jill)
Joanne (Jo)
Victoria (Vicky)
Diane (Di)
Denise
Louise

IsItWickedNotToCare · 21/08/2026 21:38

I like plant names like Veronica, Rosemary, Hazel, Willow, and Heather.

BreatheAndFocus · 21/08/2026 21:34

Sarah
Amanda
Clare
Carol
Melanie
Patricia
Nicola
Davina
Donna
Frances
Ruth
Theresa
Karen
Rachel
Deborah
Jacqueline
Tracy
Tina
Joanna
Julie/Julia
Janet
Helen
Sharon
Alison
Lesley

IcanBe · 21/08/2026 21:32

Some of my classmates - born early 60s

Susan
Mary
Linda
Tina
Hilary
Judith
Nicola
Hazel
Helen
Patricia
Dawn
Joanne
Alison
Pauline
Claire/Clare
Sheila
Elizabeth
Jaqueline
Anne/Ann
Julie

Mairzydotes · 21/08/2026 21:14

I've been looking through my Facebook friends list ;

Hayley
Kayley
Shauna
Stacey
Ailsa
Suzanne
Leanne
Melissa
Jill
Sinaed
Chardae
Charmaine
Lesleyanne
Zoe
Natalie
Lisa

suburburban · 21/08/2026 21:13

Helen
Frances
Harriet
Lisa
Gina
Tiffany
Chloe
Penny/Penelope
Antonia
Charlotte

AndresyFiorella · 21/08/2026 21:08

I love these names! Nothing too frilly or cutest like nowadays.

I was born in 79 and the most common names at school were:

Anna
Sarah
Katherine
Rachel
Laura
Louise
Emma
Joanna/Joanne
Claire

Oliwiaa · 21/08/2026 21:06

My favourites are Caroline, Clare, Rachel, Jane, Natalie, Catherine, Justine, Leah, Zoe

MyManinCaracas · 21/08/2026 20:58

Michelle

mathanxiety · 21/08/2026 20:52

Avril
Edel
Marie
Martina
Carmel
Gillian
Jill
Annette
Pamela
Jacinta
Majella
Pauline
Sonia
Tanya

Altotoday · 21/08/2026 20:48

These are the people I went to school with in the 70s and 80s:
Lucy
Emma
Victoria
Clare
Rachel
Karen
Caroline
Catherine
Elizabeth
Stephanie
Julie
Louisa
Sarah
Kate
Joanna
Josephine

Shinyredbicycle · 21/08/2026 20:38

Jane
Jayne
Janet
Karen
Sharon
Tracey
Claire
Clare
Tina
Belinda
Sarah
Sara
Lesley
Rachel
Nicola
Susan
Susanne
Suzanne
Susanna
Suzanna
Angela

NamingNoNames · 21/08/2026 20:23

To be really authentic, the middle name has to be Louise
Some names need to have the middle name Ann/Anne

Nearly every Julie, Sally and Tracey I know are Julie Anne, Sally Anne or Tracey Anne.
The others if ending in -a need the middle name Jane or Louise depending on whether the name is 1960s or 1970s/80s.
Laura must be Laura Jane and Claire must be Claire Louise. Emma or Sarah could be either.

suburburban · 21/08/2026 20:07

Hannah
Jeanette
Leslie
Alexia
Alexandra
Rachel
Anne
Jane
Claire
Christina
Jennifer
Julia
Isobel
Amanda

suburburban · 21/08/2026 20:05

BogRollBOGOF · 20/08/2026 17:14

They're lovely, varied lists of distinctive names that are great in their own right or easy to shorten.

Class lists in recent years have been quite repetitive of phonetically quite similar (often short vowelly) names that are very pleasant in their own right, but not substantially different to other popular names.

To be really authentic, the middle name has to be Louise Grin

Doesn’t it just 😂

WeddingDressguest · 21/08/2026 20:04

In my 90s class, i knew

Claire
Gemma
Lisa
Kimberley
Emma

Specialneedsnightmare · 21/08/2026 19:46

Gemma
Sarah
Hannah
Louise
Samantha
Joanne
Caroline
Marcia
Nicola
Georgina
Elizabeth
Rachel
Madison
Tamara
Charlene
Jennifer
Danielle

honeyfox · 21/08/2026 19:29

I spent some time with a teenage Alison last weekend, really like the name! She's lovely too.