NameTrends

Most popular baby names of 2008

Top 100 boys & girls in 2008. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.

In 2008, the most popular US baby name for girls was Emma (18,830 babies) and for boys was Jacob (22,621 babies), according to the Social Security Administration. The top five girl names were Emma, Isabella, Emily, Olivia, Ava; the top five boy names were Jacob, Michael, Ethan, Joshua, Daniel. The full top 100 for each sex, with birth counts, is below.

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.

Top 100 girl names, 2008

#NameBabies
1Emma18,830
2Isabella18,629
3Emily17,448
4Olivia17,088
5Ava17,051
6Madison17,047
7Sophia16,091
8Abigail15,088
9Elizabeth12,027
10Chloe11,836
11Samantha11,190
12Addison10,767
13Natalie10,201
14Mia10,173
15Alexis9,734
16Alyssa9,653
17Hannah9,577
18Ashley9,408
19Ella9,364
20Sarah9,055
21Grace9,042
22Taylor8,344
23Brianna8,278
24Lily8,128
25Hailey7,872
26Anna7,278
27Victoria7,127
28Kayla6,835
29Lillian6,817
30Lauren6,455
31Kaylee6,302
32Allison6,241
33Savannah6,134
34Nevaeh6,112
35Gabriella6,039
36Sofia5,985
37Makayla5,957
38Avery5,829
39Riley5,774
40Leah5,634
41Julia5,620
42Aubrey5,570
43Jasmine5,536
44Audrey5,443
45Katherine5,350
46Morgan5,333
47Destiny5,320
48Brooklyn5,317
49Sydney5,264
50Alexa5,226
51Kylie5,194
52Brooke5,186
53Kaitlyn5,117
54Evelyn5,101
55Layla4,931
56Madeline4,820
57Kimberly4,814
58Zoe4,781
59Jessica4,739
60Peyton4,738
61Alexandra4,612
62Claire4,601
63Maria4,593
64Madelyn4,567
65Mackenzie4,474
66Arianna4,426
67Jocelyn4,372
68Amelia4,352
69Angelina4,299
70Trinity4,276
71Maya4,270
72Andrea4,263
73Valeria4,206
74Rachel4,087
75Sophie4,065
76Aaliyah4,046
77Mariah4,041
78Vanessa4,032
79Gabrielle4,027
80Katelyn3,976
81Ariana3,916
82Bailey3,907
83Camila3,847
84Jennifer3,797
85Melanie3,714
86Charlotte3,671
87Autumn3,669
88Gianna3,669
89Paige3,647
90Faith3,636
91Payton3,612
92Sara3,595
93Isabelle3,573
94Caroline3,545
95Genesis3,523
96Mary3,514
97Isabel3,489
98Zoey3,450
99Gracie3,427
100Megan3,416

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.

Top 100 boy names, 2008

#NameBabies
1Jacob22,621
2Michael20,652
3Ethan20,223
4Joshua19,231
5Daniel19,032
6Alexander18,711
7Anthony18,417
8William18,403
9Christopher17,966
10Matthew17,604
11Jayden17,167
12Andrew16,779
13Joseph16,599
14David16,347
15Noah15,808
16Aiden15,592
17James15,190
18Ryan14,686
19Logan13,861
20John13,336
21Nathan13,262
22Elijah13,241
23Christian13,069
24Gabriel13,041
25Benjamin12,958
26Jonathan12,905
27Samuel12,774
28Tyler12,709
29Nicholas12,533
30Gavin11,752
31Dylan11,710
32Jackson11,641
33Brandon11,482
34Caleb10,579
35Mason10,489
36Angel10,357
37Isaac10,030
38Evan9,926
39Jack9,897
40Jose9,826
41Kevin9,798
42Isaiah9,670
43Luke9,424
44Justin9,365
45Landon9,361
46Lucas9,328
47Zachary9,235
48Jordan9,099
49Robert8,841
50Aaron8,545
51Brayden8,445
52Thomas8,370
53Cameron8,305
54Hunter8,045
55Austin7,997
56Adrian7,938
57Connor7,817
58Owen7,802
59Aidan7,709
60Jason7,662
61Julian7,469
62Wyatt7,313
63Charles7,288
64Luis7,135
65Carter7,069
66Juan7,034
67Chase7,003
68Jeremiah6,594
69Diego6,572
70Brody6,299
71Xavier6,290
72Adam6,098
73Carlos6,054
74Sebastian6,041
75Liam5,982
76Hayden5,949
77Nathaniel5,858
78Henry5,788
79Jesus5,758
80Ian5,723
81Tristan5,659
82Bryan5,505
83Sean5,471
84Alex5,400
85Cole5,389
86Eric5,377
87Brian5,263
88Jaden5,193
89Carson5,127
90Blake5,099
91Ayden5,058
92Cooper5,051
93Dominic4,965
94Brady4,815
95Josiah4,785
96Caden4,773
97Kyle4,705
98Colton4,550
99Eli4,526
100Kaden4,508

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.

Browse nearby years

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Frequently asked questions

What were the most popular baby names in 2008?

In 2008, the most popular US girl name was Emma (18,830 babies) and the most popular boy name was Jacob (22,621 babies), per the Social Security Administration. The top five girls were Emma, Isabella, Emily, Olivia, Ava; the top five boys were Jacob, Michael, Ethan, Joshua, Daniel.

How many babies got the #1 name in 2008?

In 2008, Emma was given to 18,830 baby girls and Jacob to 22,621 baby boys, the highest counts that year in SSA national data.

Source

U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, national data for 2008. SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026. Public domain (U.S. Government). See our methodology.

Last updated: 2026-06-22