What Are Some of the Different Named Generations?


Quick Answer

Some of the named generations include the Greatest Generation or the GI Generation, the Baby Boomers and Generation X. The latest generation as of 2015 is the Millenials, or Generation Y. The next generation has yet to be definitively named, although Generation Z and iGeneration are both sometimes seen.

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The Greatest Generation, or the GI Generation, refers to the generation that grew up in the Great Depression and fought in World War II. This generation is also sometimes called the Swing Generation, a reference to the music of the era. The Baby Boomers are the next generation, so named because of the huge increase in birth rates right after the ending of World War II when the soldiers returned home. They protested the Vietnam War and participated in the civil rights movement.

Generation X is broadly categorized as a rebellious and radical generation. The name reflects the generation's resistance to labeling. Originally, Generation X was known as the Baby Busters, which reflected the decline of fertility during the years 1965 to 1980. During their teenage years, Generation X experienced the fall of the Berlin Wall and the AIDS epidemic.

The Millenials are so named as they were the first generation to graduate high school and come of age in the 2000s. They lived through September 11, the rise of the Internet, and are said by some to be entitled and narcissistic.

Generation names do not always stick, nor do they always accurately describe the generation as a whole, according to those who study generational labels and attributes. Additionally, some generations are not named until much later, such as in the case of the Greatest Generation. Tom Brokaw coined this term and first used it in 1998.

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