Generation X facts for kids

Generation X, commonly abbreviated to Gen X, is the generation born after the Western Post–World War II baby boom and before the Millennials. Commentators typically use birth years ranging from the mid 1960s to the early 1980s.

Many sources describe Generation X as people born between the years 1965 to 1980.

Examples of Gen Xers include Chris Pratt, Billy Corgan, Ben Stiller, Scott Weiland, Will Smith, Adam Sandler, Orlando Bloom, Kurt Cobain, Claire Danes, Brooke Shields, Sarah Jessica Parker, and Isla Fisher.

Images for kids

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  Douglas Coupland popularized the term Generation X in his 1991 novel Generation X: Tales for an Accelerated Culture.

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  Western fertility rates, 1960–1980

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  U.S. fertility rates, 1963–1981

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  US living adult generations

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  US Marriages Ending in Divorce 1950–1990

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  U.S. Participation Rates for Women Professionals 1966—2013

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  U.S. Department of Health booklet published in 1988.

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  An 8-bit 1977 Apple II.

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  Total Fall Enrollment in US degree granting Institutions 1965–1998

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  America Online (AOL) version 2.0 program disk for Microsoft Windows (1994), widely used by younger Gen Xers to access the Internet

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  Google co-founder Sergey Brin, speaking at a Web 2.0 conference.

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  This illustration shows three cultural touchstones for Generation X: singer Michael Jackson, who dominated pop charts in the 1980s; alien characters from the popular arcade video game Space Invaders; and a videocassette, which revolutionized home entertainment by enabling TV viewers to record shows and watch prerecorded films at home.

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  The Offspring performing in 2008 in Fortaleza, Brazil

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  Nirvana singer Kurt Cobain (pictured here in 1992) was called the "voice of Generation X" in the 1990s, playing the same role for this demographic as Bob Dylan and John Lennon played for baby boomers in the 1960s.

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  This cartoon depicts a 1980s-era dancer doing breakdancing, an African-American dance form that was a key part of hip hop culture.

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  Kevin Smith is an influential Gen X indie filmmaker, his flagship film being Clerks.

See also

In Spanish: Generación X para niños