Generation Years Chart: 19th to 21st Century Generations (2023)

The generation years chart and timeline describe the 20th and 21st-century generations, based on birth years and demographic profiles. The timeline begins with the Greatest Generation in the 20th century, and ends with Generation Alpha in the 21st century.

The generations are categorized in collective birth-years that range between 13 and 23 years. To illustrate, the age bracket for the Greatest Generation spans 23 years (1901 to 1924), and 15 years for Generation Alpha (2010 and 2024).

Whileageis an important yardstick in classifying these demographic cohorts, additional factors explain the similarities and differences in their behavior and attitude towards life.

In particular, the cohorts share unique characteristics and experiences inparenting, cultural trends, religious beliefs, political viewpoints, and social/economic well-being.

These ideals and values are shaped byexisting trends in politics, the economy, wars, globalization,andadvancements in technology. Technology only became a reference factor starting with the Millennial generation.

The United States, Western Europe, and the rest of the developed world have documenteddemographic cohortsfor many decades. The developing world only began collecting its data following the reach of technology and globalization.

Generation Years Chart

The following chart shows the generation names and corresponding birth years.:

Generations Years Timeline

This section describes the 7 generation cohorts, their birth years, and characteristics:

NOTE:

Note that the age brackets mentioned below may not necessarily have universal cut-off dates. Different countries and sources will quote varying generational timelines for scholarly and other reasons. The differences are however not big enough to alter the structure of the cohorts.

Also true, the characteristics of the cohorts are not entirely universal. This is explained through unique traits and values in select families and communities that may overlap for generations. Still, many things change from generation to generation, and they form the basis of this article.

1. The Greatest Generation: (1901 – 1924)

The Greatest Generation, also known as theG.I. Generation, theWWII Generation, and theFederation Generation in Australia, is the first cohort in our list, born between 1901 and 1924.

This generation was consideredGREAT because it showed remarkable determination and resilience during WW1, WW2, and the Great Depression.

The men and women of this generation had the passion and willingness to fight for their country during the wars, because they believed it was theright thing to do. They also believed in themselves and stayed calm during the tough years of the depression.

The iconic journalist, Tom Brokaw, coined the namefor this cohort, a title that became popular after he published a book he named The Greatest Generation.

In the book, he credits the cohort for staying vigilant at a time when the world was going crazy and facing extreme challenges. By all means, the men and women at the time gave true meaning tothe words courage, sacrifice,andhonor.

Out of the many, he lauded individuals such asCharles Van Gorder(a medical doctor),Senator Daniel Inouye,Martha Settle Putney(a black member of Women’s Army Corps –WAC), and George H. W. Bush (pilot), as part of the many people who served their country with honor and courage.

Tom Brokaw lauded the following traits in the cohort:

• Integrity
• Humility
• Work ethics
• Financial ethics
• A big sense of responsibility

Ronald Reagan (1911), John F Kennedy (1917), and Jimmy Carter (1924) are three other famous American personalities born during the Greatest Generation years.

2. The Silent Generation: (1925 – 1945)

The Silent Generation – also called the Traditionalists – was a cohort born between 1925 and 1945, just after WWI and during WWII and the Great Depression. The age bracket for this generation spanned 20 years.

The men and women of the Silent Generation said very little and worked hard to get by. This probably contributed to their civic approach to work & lifestyle.

A lot of things about this generation was attributed to the challenges and economic fragility created by the two world wars, and the firm parenting style they went through.

The name ‘Silent Generation‘ was coined by Time Magazine in a 1951 article titled The Younger Generation. Time slammed this group for lacking ambition and drive.

It was branded unimaginative, cautious, and withdrawn – perhaps a little too harsh. The Great Depression, which lasted from 1929 to 1939, and the Dust Bowl, which devastated farmlands in the 30s, perhaps contributed to their conditions.

In scathing words, the article notes,

The most startling fact about the younger generation is its silence. With some rare exceptions, youth is nowhere near the rostrum. By comparison with the Flaming Youth of their fathers & mothers, today’s younger generation is a still, small flame. It does not issue manifestoes, make speeches or carry posters.

People: THE YOUNGER GENERATION

To be fair to the Silent Generation, it was caught between two influential generations: the Greatest and the Baby Boomer generations, and raised during periods of economic madness!

Having grown up as children of fighters (Greatest Generation) during the world wars, they were nurtured to be seen rather than heard as the wars raged on.

The Baby Boomer generation, which succeeded them, lived through a fairy tale lifestyle because of their hard work.

To top it all, the Boomers took over the world as the Silent Generation looked on.

In the US alone, the Silent Generation has had to witness the Boomers monopolize the presidency for decades. While they have only one to their name – Joe Bidden, Boomer presidents include George W Bush, Bill Clinton, Barack Obama, and Donald Trump.

General traits of the Silent Generation:

• Loyal
• Determined
• Respectful
• Thrifty

Warren Buffet (1930), Joe Bidden (1942), Malcolm X (1925), Marilyn Monroe (1926), Harry Belafonte (1927), and Mohammed Ali (1941), are some famous American personalities born during these generation years. These lived to show the world they were not necessarily silent!

3. The Baby Boomer Generation: (1946 – 1964)

The Baby Boomer birth years lasted between 1946 and 1964, spanning an age bracket of 18 years. They were born at a time when WWII had just ended, and there was a feeling of hope in the US, in particular.

Coupled with the hard work put in by the two previous generations, Boomers had enough time to figure out their future.

The post-war years allowed them to do what others had always failed to do. They saw a future of prosperity, which also encouraged new Boomer couples to give birth to many children.

The boom lasted approximately 20 years.

The bumper birth rate created a new era of consumerism that helped drive the US economy and created a new breed of rich and mindless individuals.

According to Forbes, the Baby Boomer cohort

became especially well-known for its cultivation of self and its carelessness about material wealth.

The Boom Generation

The name Baby Boomer became popular in 1977, thanks to a Washington Post publication about the future of the world economy.

The phrase was used in reference to the boom in childbirth following the return of American fighters from war, and eclipsed other names such as Rock and Roll Generation and Generation Jones.

The Baby Boomer phrase became widely accepted around the world to denote varying opinions and emotions:

• The Chinese through Chairman Mao Zedong used it in the 1960s to encourage conception.
• The Germans used ‘babyboomers’ to refer to the upsurge of babies in the 1960s.
• The Dutch used ‘de baby boomers’ to point out the beneficiaries of wealth through the 1960s.
• The French used ‘les baby-boomers’ to refer to a student generation that rioted in 1968.
• The Italians view the birth years of the 1960s as byproducts of the economic boom at the time.

A few strong characteristics of Baby Boomers:

• Ambitious, goal-oriented, and competitive
• Focused and believe in more hours at work
• Some times careless about wealth
• Resourceful and team players
• Bureaucratic

Other notable events during the Baby Boomer years:

• Apart from bumper births, other notable events during these years included the Vietnam War and the enaction of the Civil Rights Act in 1964.

• In the US alone, African-Americans make up 10 percent and Hispanics 8 percent of this demographic group. Baby Boomers will account for 20 percent of the American population as they age.

Popular personalities in these generation years are George W Bush (1946), Steve Jobs (1955), Tony Blair (1953), Princess Diana (1961), Jeff Bezos (1964), Nicholas Cage (1964), Johnny Depp (63), Bill Clinton (1946), Barack Obama (1961), Donald Trump (1946), Bill Gates (1955) and George Clooney (1961).

4. Generation X: (1965 – 1979)

The age range for Generation X lasted only 14 years, stretching between 1965 and 1979.

Also called Baby Buster or Gen X, the cohort reversed the baby boom trend by registering low birth rates!

Similar to the Silent Generation, Gen X is unfortunate to be sandwiched between two popular generations: Baby Boomers and Millennials.

The photographer Robert Capa came up with its name, which was then used to mean ‘unknown’.

The X generation desired, and even today prefers not to be defined in any manner. This name was made popular by Douglas Coupland, in his 1991 book‘Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture’, to tell a story of a group of young men (Gen X) living in their own lost world.

Gen X is also defined by its love for music and art, and actually pioneered pop culture as we know it today. Xers grew up watching lots of TV soaps, and for this, have fond memories of ‘Friends‘ and other popular TV series.

The generation also groomed an increase of single-parents and continues to record higher divorce rates than other generations, right into the 21st Century.

They are independent-minded, educated, informal, casual, entrepreneurial, and are passing on the same traits to their children, – the Z cohort.

X is also known as the last generation to hold dear to its culture and education, and is the last to understand a different cultural world before technology became the norm.

According to Vanity Fair,

Generation X, the last Americans schooled in the old manner, the last Americans that know how to fold a newspaper, take a joke, and listen to a dirty story without losing their minds.

Following the innovation and distribution of the first lots of microcomputers in the 80s and 90s, Generation X somehow became one of the first to interact with technology.

Finally, Gen Xers, who are well into their 40s and 50s and defined by many cultural identities, such as Parental Advisory, is also touted as the last chance society has to preserve traditional values that are fast becoming extinct.

General characteristics of the Xers:

• Work hard
• Believe in work-life balance
• Independent-minded
• Flexible and direct
• Self-reliant
• Thinkers and embrace feedback
• In debt
• Cynical?

Famous personalities from these generation years: Jay Z (1969), Tiger Woods (1975), Halle Berry (1966), Julia Roberts (1967), Celine Dione (1968), and Will Smith (1968).

5. Generation Y: (1980 – 1994)

Also called Millennials, the Generation Y cohort was born between 1980 and 1994, stretching for 15 years. The Millennial cohort was born at a time when technology was taking true shape, majorly for productivity.

The use of the internet helped them consolidate their grip on technology, and embrace the wide-ranging possibilities in the 21st Century.

Most Millennial childres were parented by the Baby Boom generation and were named so because they bore the responsibility and opportunity to fully harness the experiences of technology, at the start of the new millennium.

Technology remains critical for driving productivity and has become the tool of choice even at home.

This correlation with the initial years of digital evolution explains why Millennials use technology to extend their reach and venture into global markets. They have used these to drive and shape economies around the world.

Millennials have grown up in a time of rapid change, giving them a set of priorities and expectations sharply different from previous generations.

Who are they?

A large chunk of millennial parents are also renowned for championing a new age of parenting, unlike the Boomers and Xers. Apart from being ethnically and racially diverse, they are more likely to entertain their children to don wearable gadgets and try out different AI innovations.

In a 2018 survey carried out byGo Daddy, 48% of millennial parents deemed it fine for their Alpha children to have an online experience, compared to only 27% of Gen Xers.

The general traits of Millennials:

• Socially driven
• Ethically diverse
• Tech-driven and curious
• Educated and multi-career based
• Financially conscious and therefore stable
• Poor at interpersonal skills
• Less religious

Popular figures from this era: Mark Zuckerberg (1984), Taylor Swift (1989), Christina Aguilera (1980), Nicki Minaj (1982), Rihanna (1988), and Beyoncé (1981).

6. Generation Z: (1995 – 2009)

The Generation Z birth years lasted only 13 years, stretching from1996 to 2009. The Zs are also known as the children of Generation X.

As of 2024, when the last Alpha will be born, they will total close to 27 percent of the workforce, according to McCrindle.

The Z or iGen, just like the previous generation Y, has immersed itself deep in the world of the internet and technology.Unlike their predecessors, they exhibit a sense of euphoria and hope to avoid past mistakes by earlier generations.

They also approach fancy lifestyles rather passively in comparison to Millennials. For example, they learn to drive late and become sexually active much later in life. They also indulge in alcoholic beverages a little later than the previous generations.

Instead, they spend most of the time planning for their future amidst the tight work conditions around the world.

The huge amount of information they are exposed to has also affected their concentration. Hence, they are always multi-tasking and have developed short attention spans.

They may seem not to have time for serious stuff at school and at work, but experts predict they will be more goal-oriented and pragmatic.

These traits have led experts to somehow liken them to the Silent generation of the 1920s to 1940s.

Characteristics of Z:

• Tech-savvy and ‘always on‘
• Poor at interpersonal skills
• Reduced attention span
• Indoor generation
• Ethnically diverse
• Set for online social interactions
• Less religious
• Personalized learning

Popular iGens: Baby Ariel (2000), Zendaya (1996), and Baby Kaely (2004).

7. Generation Alpha: (2010 – 2024)

Generation Alpha is the latest in the chart of generation cohorts, and one that best suits the digital native description.

The Alpha cohort brings together people born between 2010 and 2024, adding up to a total of 15 years. The cohort replaced Generation Z whose birth years fell between 1996 and 2009.

It is estimated that 2 million Alpha kids are delivered weekly in health facilities around the world, and their numbers will reach a whopping 2 billion as of 2024.

As of 2022, the eldest Alpha child is 12 years old.

The first Alpha kids were born in 2010, the same year the first iPad was released. The iPad kicked started a tablet war between manufacturers, which helped catapult tablets into the Alpha life.

These are popular tools for collaborative learning, and have shaped both Alpha and Gen Z lives. But maybe not for so long!

Alphas will probably be the most transformative generation yet, at least until the Beta generation arrives. Alphas are born in a world saturated with gadgets and are experiencing the implementation of new technology innovations as years go by.

As much as they are deeply immersed in touchscreens their interaction with technology and the bigger picture of life is changing and will evolve drastically in the next decades.

The rapid advancements in artificial intelligence mean that interaction with the digital ecosystem will have to be responsive enough to suit their imagination.

Teen and adult Alphas will probably never use apps and cell phones the way they are used today. With the onset of the Metaverse, they will likely spend a lot of time exploring the virtual world and spaces.

They will bury themselves in games, go shopping, travel the world, chat with friends while hidden behind virtual reality (VR) headsets and glasses.

The first movers of the Metaverse just might be Generation Alpha – the most technologically integrated generation of our lifetime.

Mccrindle

Lastly, the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 impacted Alpha childhood development in many ways.

They spent more time at home, missed out on school, and had their social lives impacted due to social distancing.

On a positive note, their diet, hygiene and overall health got better, because they were made to eat nutritious meals, keep clean, and of course sleep more.

General traits of Generation Alpha:

• Tech-savvy and ‘always on‘
• Will need 21st century skills in the classroom
• Will readily embrace metaverse devices such as VR and AR
• Poor at interpersonal skills
• Will probably have reduced attention span
• Less religious
• Ethnically diverse & aware
• Largely an indoor generation