By Joel P. Engardio

A new year is a good time to learn more about and honor the generations of past and present. I’m glad someone thought to take this photo of four generations in my family: great grandma (Lost Generation), grandma (Greatest Generation), mom (Baby Boomer), myself (Generation X).

Do you know your generations? I was surprised to discover that in 2021 the oldest Millennials turn 40! How did they become middle aged? Now, the torch of youth is held by Generation Z, age 24 and under.

To better understand the timelines, I’ve compiled a “Generations 101” explainer.

Lost Generation: Born 1883 to 1900
Came of age or in the prime of youth during World War I and the Roaring Twenties. Generation name popularized by Ernest Hemingway in the 1926 novel The Sun Also Rises that quotes Gertrude Stein: “You are all a lost generation.” Influential members: Eleanor Roosevelt, Dwight Eisenhower, George Burns, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Harry Truman, Charlie Chaplin, Babe Ruth, Amelia Earhart, Colonel Sanders, Mae West, Duke Ellington, Coco Chanel.

Greatest Generation: Born 1901 to 1927
Young adulthood spent surviving the Great Depression and fighting World War II. Generation name coined by news broadcaster Tom Brokaw in 1998. Influential members: Queen Elizabeth II, John F. Kennedy, Nelson Mandela, Jimmy Carter, Katharine Hepburn, Betty White, James Baldwin, Bette Davis, Mother Teresa, Frank Sinatra.

Silent Generation: Born 1928 to 1945
Children who experienced the hardship of the Great Depression and/or World War II. Were teens or young adults during the McCarthy era, when it was dangerous to speak out. Generation name coined by Time magazine in 1951. Influential members: Joe Biden, Martin Luther King Jr., Bernie Sanders, Barbara Streisand, Johnny Cash, Elvis, Bob Dylan, John Lennon, Muhammad Ali, Neil Armstrong, Pope Francis, Billie Jean King, Aretha Franklin, Nancy Pelosi, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Fred Rogers.

Baby Boomer Generation: Born 1946 to 1964
Children of the post-WWII baby boom. Generation named coined by the Washington Post in 1977. Influential members: Kamala Harris (born 1964), Barack Obama, Bill Gates, Princess Diana, Steve Jobs, Elton John, Hillary Clinton, Jeff Bezos (Amazon founder), Cher, Whoopi Goldberg. 

Generation X: Born 1965 to 1980
Latch key kids and young adult slackers. Generation name popularized by Douglas Coupland in the 1991 novel Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture. Influential members: Elon Musk, Larry Page and Sergey Brin (Google founders), Kobe Bryant, Tiger Woods, Jennifer Aniston, Jennifer Lopez, Chadwick Boseman, Julian Castro, Laverne Cox, Tina Fey, Venus Williams.

Millennial Generation: Born 1981 to 1996
Came of age in the 21st Century. Generation name coined by Neil Howe in 1991 book Generations. Influential members: Mark Zuckerberg, Prince William, Adele, Serena Williams, Stephen Curry, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Pete Buttigieg.

Generation Z: Born 1997 to 2012
Digital natives and first generation to have access to smartphones as children. Generation name coined by author Hunter S. Thompson in 1994, originally meant for any generation that followed Generation X. Influential members: Greta Thunberg, Billie Eilish, Malala Yousafzai, Shawn Mendes.

Generation Alpha: Born 2013 to present
First generation born fully within the 21st Century and many will live to see the 22nd Century. Generation name coined by social researcher Mark McCrindle in 2005. Influential members: Prince George (future King of England).

Learn more about the generations at the Pew Research Center