The Office (US) ran from 2005 to 2013 and has never really ended. In 2020, it was the most-streamed show in America — more than any new Netflix original. Peacock reportedly paid $500 million to license it through 2025. An entire generation of millennials watched it in high school, grew up with it, and is now naming their children.
So what did it do to baby names?
The Dunder Mifflin cast and the SSA data
| Character | Actor | Name | 2004 Rank | 2014 Rank | 2024 Rank | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Michael Scott | Steve Carell | Michael | #4 | #16 | #95 | ↓ declining |
| Jim Halpert | John Krasinski | Jim | ~#650 | ~#1,000 | ~#1,300 | ↓ declining |
| Pam Beesly | Jenna Fischer | Pam | ~#1,200 | ~#1,700 | — | ↓ extinct |
| Ryan Howard | B.J. Novak | Ryan | #13 | #50 | #111 | ↓ declining |
| Kelly Kapoor | Mindy Kaling | Kelly | #121 | #308 | #819 | ↓ declining |
| Dwight Schrute | Rainn Wilson | Dwight | #690 | #766 | #957 | ↓ slow decline |
| Angela Martin | Angela Kinsey | Angela | #106 | #285 | #532 | ↓ declining |
| Kevin Malone | Brian Baumgartner | Kevin | #53 | #142 | #283 | ↓ declining |
| Oscar Martinez | Oscar Nunez | Oscar | #188 | #175 | #155 | ↑ rising |
| Stanley Hudson | Leslie David Baker | Stanley | #502 | #538 | #495 | → flat |
Michael: one of history's greatest declines
Michael — Boys #95, 5,012 babies in 2024.
Michael Scott is one of the most beloved, quoted, and meme-d TV characters of all time. Michael the name is one of the greatest declines in American naming history.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1954 | #1 | 83,922 |
| 1964 | #1 | 83,168 |
| 1974 | #1 | 67,468 |
| 1980 | #1 | 68,704 |
| 1994 | #2 | 51,296 |
| 2004 | #4 | 33,228 |
| 2014 | #16 | 13,980 |
| 2020 | #57 | 6,724 |
| 2024 | #95 | 5,012 |
Michael was #1 in America for most of 1954-1980. In 1954, more than 83,000 boys were named Michael — the most babies given a single name in any year in American history. It's now at #95 with 5,012 babies and still declining.
No TV character could save Michael. The name accumulated too many generational associations — Michaels born in the 1960s, 70s, 80s are now middle-aged. When a name is associated with parents' generation, it rarely recovers quickly. See fallen-names and generational-names.
Ryan: the show didn't help
Ryan — Boys #111, 3,247 babies in 2024.
Ryan Howard was the ambitious temp who became regional director who was eventually arrested. Ryan the name was already declining before the show began.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | #17 | 19,052 |
| 2004 | #13 | 17,450 |
| 2010 | #26 | 10,482 |
| 2014 | #50 | 7,109 |
| 2020 | #78 | 4,562 |
| 2024 | #111 | 3,247 |
Ryan peaked in the mid-1990s through early 2000s. The show's success didn't reverse the decline at all. Ryan now sounds like a name from the early 2000s — Ryan Seacrest, Ryan Cabrera, Ryan from The O.C. were all at peak cultural visibility simultaneously, and that's the cohort now graduating from college.
Dwight: the character name nobody chose
Dwight — Boys #957, 218 babies in 2024.
Dwight Schrute — paper salesman, beet farmer, assistant to the regional manager — is one of the most quoted characters in American TV history. His name is essentially dead.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1954 | #95 | 4,208 |
| 1964 | #210 | 2,912 |
| 1984 | #416 | 1,056 |
| 2004 | #690 | 330 |
| 2014 | #766 | 301 |
| 2020 | #900 | 245 |
| 2024 | #957 | 218 |
218 babies. That's all Dwight Schrute could generate for his name. Dwight peaked as a name in the Eisenhower era (named after Dwight D. Eisenhower) and has declined ever since. The Office character didn't help because the characterization is so specific — eccentric, socially oblivious, shrute beets — that it's become impossible to use the name without evoking him. This is actually a reverse of the usual celebrity effect: the character made Dwight less usable, not more.
Pam: effectively extinct
Pam — not in top 1,000, fewer than 100 babies in 2024.
Pam Beesly-Halpert is the heart of the show, the artist-receptionist who finds her voice and becomes a beloved character. Pam the name is essentially gone.
Pamela peaked in the 1950s-60s (top 10 for much of 1953-1962) and declined so completely that it barely registers in modern SSA data. The nickname Pam — which was the common usage — is even more rare. No TV appearance could revive a name this deeply associated with a specific generation.
Kelly and Angela: the same story
Kelly — Girls #819, 347 babies in 2024.
Kelly Kapoor was popular culture obsessed and fashion-focused. Kelly the name peaked in the 1970s-80s (top-20 girls name) and has been declining ever since. In 2024 it barely appears in the top 1,000.
Angela — Girls #532, 676 babies in 2024.
Angela Martin was uptight and conservative, which may have added negative connotations to an already-declining name. Angela peaked in the 1960s-70s and is now at #532 — same late-decline phase as Kelly.
Oscar: the one exception
Oscar — Boys #155, 2,462 babies in 2024.
Oscar Martinez is the exception in the Office cast — his name is actually rising.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | #268 | 1,160 |
| 2004 | #188 | 1,966 |
| 2014 | #175 | 2,169 |
| 2020 | #160 | 2,346 |
| 2024 | #155 | 2,462 |
Oscar's rise isn't because of The Office — it predates the show and continues to rise for independent reasons. Oscar is a Scandinavian name with ancient roots (from Old Norse meaning "divine spear") that has also been boosted by its Hispanic usage (it's common in Spanish-speaking communities), the Academy Awards brand, and a general taste for short, punchy, vintage names. See timeless-names.
What The Office tells us about naming
The pattern in The Office data is stark: almost every character name is declining, and the show did nothing to reverse those declines.
The reason is structural. The Office was set in the present (2005-2013) and used contemporary names — which means they were parents' names for the people watching the show. When millennials watched The Office, Michael, Jim, Ryan, and Kelly were their parents' generation's names. You don't name your baby after your parent's name just because a TV character has it.
Compare this to Game of Thrones (medieval fantasy names with no real-world generational associations) or Bridgerton (Regency-era names that feel vintage-but-fresh) — both produced genuine naming boosts precisely because their characters' names felt new and aspirational to modern parents.
See game-of-thrones-names, bridgerton-names, friends-names, and stranger-things-names for the full picture of TV naming effects.