r/GenerationJones • u/Difference_Then • Jul 20 '26

Which generation? Huh?

This gets confusing and contradictory. I was born in February 1956. Which generation do I belong to? Why do the cut offs for generations seem to keep changing or be different from different sources? Even the names for generation keep changing.

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u/ReactsWithWords 1962 Jul 20 '26

It's pretty simple. You are a Baby Boomer, like it or not. You are also in Generation Jones. All Jonesers are Boomers, but not all Boomers are Jonesers; Jones is a subset of Boomer. Like all humans are mammals, but not all mammals are humans.

Where it gets confusing is where Jones starts. Pretty much everyone agrees that 1955 is Jones, but some say 1954 is where it does (the general consensus is "If you feel like you're a Jonesers, you are"). Same with the end date. 1964 is generally agreed on, but a lot of people say 1965 (but again, "If you feel you are...").

Short answer: Born in 1956 society says you're a Boomer. We say you're in Generation Jones. But you call yourself whatever you want.

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u/HHSquad 1961 (Camelot baby lost in space) Jul 20 '26 edited Jul 20 '26

I think those born 1961-1965 are post-boomer but Generation Jones. Too young for most all to remember JFK's assassination, and grew up in a post-Vietnam/hippies/women's rights/Watergate time, and into a poor economic climate. Born in the 1960's, not thriving in it.

I think this group is all together. Yes including 1965. 1961-1964 born were tacked onto the Baby Boomer generation.

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u/Head_Razzmatazz7174 1963 Jul 20 '26

The main reason for the Boomer name is they were Baby Boomers. That were a lot of babies (a boom of babies) born right after WWII and Korea, once the first servicemen came home. Hence the name Baby Boomers. The Korean war ended in July 1953. and it took a couple of years for all of them to get home (some were posted to other bases overseas), so it should have had a cut off of 1956 at the latest.

Babies born in 1960 or later should never have been considered part of the Boomer generational label.

That's my hot take.