This list combines 2,162 spelling variations into 1,004 grouped names based on shared pronunciations. The most popular name in 1954 is Michael, given to 93,124 babies in total. Learn more about how this works.

Darrell has the most spelling variations with 25 different spellings, while Jerrell has the highest confusion index at 82.9%, indicating the greatest diversity in how parents choose to spell it.

When combining spelling variations, Richie showed the biggest improvement, moving up 153 positions from 502 to 349, while Wayne had the largest drop, falling 6 positions from 41 to 47.

Looking at trends, Shane shows the strongest upward momentum (births in 1952–1954 are 819.7% higher compared to 1945–1954), while Mcarthur shows the steepest decline (69.09% lower). Compared to 1953, Dirk had the largest rank improvement, moving up 156 positions to rank #289, while Booker fell 38 positions to rank #498.