List of Generation Names by Year and Definition

Introduction

Generations in the Western world (the Western world includes Western Europe, the Americas, and Australasia) are defined as social groups born within a specified period that share similar cultural traits, values, and preferences. Below is a list of dates, name definitions of generations by years, and description outlines.

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Generation Names Listed by Years

Generation Alpha

(Early 2010s - Mid-2020s) - Generation Alpha (Gen Alpha) is the demographic cohort succeeding Generation Z. Generation Alpha is the first to be born entirely in the 21st century. There has yet to be a consensus on the birth years of Generation Alpha. Generation Alpha originated from a 2008 survey conducted by Australian consulting agency McCrindle Research, whose founder Mark McCrindle, is generally credited with the term. Most members of Generation Alpha are children of Millennials. Generation Alpha was born at a time of falling fertility rates across much of the world.

Generation Z

(1997 - 2012) - Generation Z (Gen Z), colloquially known as zoomers, is the demographic cohort succeeding Millennials and preceding Generation Alpha. Most members of Generation Z are children of Generation X. Researchers and popular media use the mid-to-late 1990s as starting birth years and the early 2010s as the ending birth years.

Millennials

(1981 - 1996) - Millennials (Generation Y or Gen Y) are the demographic cohort following Generation X, and preceding Generation Z. Most millennials are the children of baby boomers, and older Generation X; millennials are often the parents of Generation Alpha.

Generation X

(1965 - 1980) - Generation X (Gen X) is the Western demographic cohort following the baby boomers and preceding the millennials. Most members of Generation X are the children of the Silent Generation and early boomers; Gen Xers are also often the parents of millennials and Generation Z.

Baby Boomers

(1946 - 1964) - Baby boomers (Boomers) are the demographic cohort following the Silent Generation and preceding Generation X. The generation is often defined as people born from 1946 to 1964 during the mid-20th century baby boom. Most baby boomers are children of either the Greatest or the Silent Generation and are often parents of Gen Xers and Millennials.

Silent Generation

(1928 - 1945) - The Silent Generation (Traditionalist Generation) is the Western demographic cohort following the Greatest Generation and preceding the Baby Boomers. The generation is generally defined as people born from 1928 to 1945.

Greatest Generation

(1901 - 1927) - The Greatest Generation (G.I. Generation or World War II generation) is the Western demographic cohort following the Lost Generation and preceding the Silent Generation. They were shaped by the Great Depression and were the primary generation composing the enlisted forces in World War II.

Lost Generation

(1883 - 1900) - The Lost Generation was the social, generational cohort in the Western world in early adulthood during World War I. The generation is generally defined as people born from 1883 to 1900.

Printable Chart of Generation Names

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Generation Patterns

While you may not use the generational names in everyday conversation, it's helpful to know the difference between (for example) Baby Boomers and Gen X'ers. While all generations have similarities, there are differences among them as well. A 2007 Pew Research Center report called Millennials: Confident. Connected. Open to Change noted the challenge of studying generations.

Karl Mannheim in his 1952 book Essays on the Sociology of Knowledge asserted the belief that people are shaped through lived experiences as a result of social change. Authors William Strauss and Neil Howe developed the Strauss-Howe generational theory outlining what they saw as a pattern of generations repeating throughout American history. Strauss and Howe have also written on the similarities of people within a generation being attributed to social change. Based on the way these lived experiences shape a generation in regard to values, the result is that the new generation will challenge the older generation's values, resulting in tension. This challenge between generations and the tension that arises is a defining point for understanding generations and what separates them.

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Cite This Page (APA): Langtree, I. C. (2023, February 27 - Last revised: 2024, April 13). List of Generation Names by Year and Definition. Disabled World. Retrieved December 12, 2024 from www.disabled-world.com/definitions/generation-names.php

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