US baby names · the 1930s

Most popular baby names of the 1930s

These are the most given US names of the 1930s, adding up Social Security counts for each year from 1930 to 1939. Across those years SSA recorded 10,663,028 girls and 10,566,534 boys under names given to five or more babies.

Mary led the girls with 573,000 babies, followed by Betty, Barbara and Shirley. For boys, Robert came first with 590,810, ahead of James, John and William.

Against the top 100 of the 1920s, 25 girls’ names and 17 boys’ names in the 1930s are newcomers (girls: Carol, Donna, Janet; boys: Jerry, Bobby, Larry). Of these names, 14 of the 100 girls’ names and 18 of the 100 boys’ names are still in the top 100 in 2025.

A decade total favours names that were steady for ten years over a single-year spike, so a list here can differ from any one year’s top 100. The sparklines show each name before and after the 1930s.

SSA names.zip · Social Security card applications · retrieved 2026-10-05

← 1920s 1940s →

Top 100 girls’ names, 1930s

Rank	Name	Girls in decade
#1	Mary	573,000
#2	Betty	300,409
#3	Barbara	296,420
#4	Shirley	229,380
#5	Patricia	220,582
#6	Dorothy	210,415
#7	Joan	173,439
#8	Margaret	157,369
#9	Nancy	142,488
#10	Helen	140,426
#11	Carol	117,731
#12	Joyce	115,506
#13	Doris	110,658
#14	Ruth	109,204
#15	Virginia	103,089
#16	Marilyn	98,531
#17	Elizabeth	96,480
#18	Jean	94,189
#19	Frances	92,117
#20	Beverly	80,846
#21	Lois	80,713
#22	Alice	78,968
#23	Donna	78,846
#24	Martha	77,697
#25	Dolores	77,139
#26	Janet	76,038
#27	Phyllis	73,805
#28	Norma	72,878
#29	Carolyn	69,525
#30	Evelyn	69,364
#31	Gloria	68,588
#32	Anna	66,598
#33	Marie	65,803
#34	Ann	64,060
#35	Mildred	61,738
#36	Rose	59,111
#37	Peggy	56,275
#38	Geraldine	50,042
#39	Catherine	50,027
#40	Judith	49,904
#41	Louise	49,859
#42	Janice	49,343
#43	Marjorie	49,213
#44	Annie	48,946
#45	Ruby	47,648
#46	Eleanor	46,379
#47	Jane	45,814
#48	Sandra	45,399
#49	Irene	44,448
#50	Wanda	43,072
#51	Elaine	41,108
#52	June	40,745
#53	Joanne	40,581
#54	Rita	38,741
#55	Florence	37,942
#56	Delores	37,603
#57	Lillian	37,391
#58	Marlene	37,355
#59	Edna	36,973
#60	Sarah	36,513
#61	Patsy	36,475
#62	Lorraine	36,333
#63	Thelma	36,254
#64	Josephine	36,051
#65	Juanita	35,915
#66	Bonnie	35,803
#67	Arlene	34,796
#68	Gladys	34,762
#69	Joann	34,698
#70	Sally	34,680
#71	Charlotte	34,646
#72	Kathleen	34,550
#73	Audrey	34,007
#74	Pauline	33,690
#75	Wilma	33,188
#76	Sylvia	33,011
#77	Theresa	32,785
#78	Jacqueline	32,115
#79	Clara	31,658
#80	Ethel	31,582
#81	Loretta	31,537
#82	Grace	31,357
#83	Sharon	31,083
#84	Edith	31,047
#85	Lucille	30,843
#86	Emma	30,022
#87	Bernice	29,905
#88	Marion	29,565
#89	Linda	29,358
#90	Jo	28,653
#91	Anne	28,621
#92	Hazel	28,567
#93	Roberta	27,731
#94	Carole	26,768
#95	Darlene	25,956
#96	Esther	25,791
#97	Katherine	25,193
#98	Ellen	25,139
#99	Laura	25,093
#100	Julia	24,938

Top 100 boys’ names, 1930s

Rank	Name	Boys in decade
#1	Robert	590,810
#2	James	547,479
#3	John	487,950
#4	William	416,730
#5	Richard	330,502
#6	Charles	303,218
#7	Donald	283,718
#8	George	192,289
#9	Thomas	183,878
#10	Joseph	180,566
#11	David	164,701
#12	Edward	147,849
#13	Ronald	140,332
#14	Paul	125,774
#15	Kenneth	125,111
#16	Frank	108,090
#17	Raymond	99,585
#18	Jack	96,396
#19	Harold	95,467
#20	Billy	88,341
#21	Gerald	82,821
#22	Walter	80,908
#23	Jerry	80,690
#24	Joe	71,470
#25	Eugene	70,938
#26	Henry	70,419
#27	Bobby	69,419
#28	Arthur	67,730
#29	Carl	66,759
#30	Larry	65,249
#31	Ralph	63,802
#32	Albert	62,829
#33	Willie	62,466
#34	Fred	56,164
#35	Michael	56,001
#36	Lawrence	54,485
#37	Harry	53,115
#38	Howard	51,495
#39	Roy	51,495
#40	Norman	49,987
#41	Roger	49,615
#42	Daniel	47,998
#43	Louis	47,754
#44	Earl	44,613
#45	Gary	43,596
#46	Clarence	42,676
#47	Anthony	42,546
#48	Francis	41,384
#49	Wayne	41,141
#50	Marvin	41,085
#51	Ernest	39,346
#52	Leonard	39,214
#53	Herbert	37,821
#54	Melvin	37,705
#55	Stanley	37,130
#56	Leroy	36,255
#57	Don	35,980
#58	Peter	35,822
#59	Jimmy	35,399
#60	Alfred	34,392
#61	Dale	32,536
#62	Bill	32,338
#63	Samuel	32,135
#64	Bernard	30,545
#65	Ray	30,211
#66	Gene	29,313
#67	Philip	28,847
#68	Russell	28,840
#69	Frederick	26,602
#70	Franklin	26,381
#71	Dennis	26,366
#72	Douglas	26,031
#73	Jimmie	25,813
#74	Gordon	25,460
#75	Andrew	25,025
#76	Theodore	24,957
#77	Floyd	24,887
#78	Johnny	24,596
#79	Allen	24,356
#80	Glenn	24,222
#81	Bruce	24,119
#82	Edwin	24,023
#83	Lee	23,954
#84	Lloyd	23,799
#85	Bob	23,293
#86	Clifford	23,100
#87	Leon	23,005
#88	Leo	22,864
#89	Clyde	22,452
#90	Eddie	22,328
#91	Vernon	22,197
#92	Martin	21,927
#93	Alvin	21,484
#94	Jim	20,823
#95	Herman	20,319
#96	Lewis	20,017
#97	Harvey	19,906
#98	Tommy	19,857
#99	Vincent	19,407
#100	Charlie	19,154