US baby names · the 1940s

Most popular baby names of the 1940s

These are the most given US names of the 1940s, adding up Social Security counts for each year from 1940 to 1949. Across those years SSA recorded 14,484,828 girls and 14,886,857 boys under names given to five or more babies.

Mary led the girls with 640,080 babies, followed by Linda, Barbara and Patricia. For boys, James came first with 795,775, ahead of Robert, John and William.

Against the top 100 of the 1930s, 29 girls’ names and 18 boys’ names in the 1940s are newcomers (girls: Susan, Judy, Karen; boys: Stephen, Steven, Terry). Of these names, 6 of the 100 girls’ names and 17 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 1940s.

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

← 1930s 1950s →

Top 100 girls’ names, 1940s

Rank	Name	Girls in decade
#1	Mary	640,080
#2	Linda	531,660
#3	Barbara	425,271
#4	Patricia	411,412
#5	Carol	292,333
#6	Sandra	265,538
#7	Nancy	252,061
#8	Sharon	221,237
#9	Judith	218,037
#10	Susan	212,016
#11	Betty	194,623
#12	Carolyn	181,858
#13	Margaret	173,028
#14	Shirley	171,780
#15	Judy	167,719
#16	Karen	167,700
#17	Donna	165,523
#18	Kathleen	152,981
#19	Joyce	151,494
#20	Dorothy	132,257
#21	Janet	130,755
#22	Diane	122,878
#23	Janice	118,893
#24	Joan	117,708
#25	Elizabeth	116,551
#26	Brenda	112,415
#27	Gloria	105,055
#28	Virginia	99,000
#29	Marilyn	98,977
#30	Martha	95,384
#31	Beverly	95,122
#32	Helen	90,742
#33	Bonnie	86,886
#34	Ruth	85,666
#35	Frances	85,448
#36	Jean	80,363
#37	Ann	76,797
#38	Phyllis	76,143
#39	Pamela	73,121
#40	Jane	72,537
#41	Alice	72,392
#42	Peggy	72,122
#43	Cheryl	70,959
#44	Doris	64,144
#45	Catherine	62,086
#46	Elaine	60,105
#47	Cynthia	58,061
#48	Marie	57,521
#49	Lois	56,854
#50	Connie	56,604
#51	Christine	54,565
#52	Diana	53,698
#53	Gail	53,140
#54	Joanne	51,655
#55	Rose	51,643
#56	Wanda	50,775
#57	Carole	50,303
#58	Rita	49,853
#59	Charlotte	49,478
#60	Jo	48,449
#61	Evelyn	48,157
#62	Geraldine	47,933
#63	Jacqueline	45,559
#64	Ellen	45,404
#65	Sally	45,344
#66	Rebecca	45,313
#67	Kathryn	44,581
#68	Deborah	44,054
#69	Norma	43,030
#70	Suzanne	41,405
#71	Anna	41,282
#72	Sue	40,943
#73	Darlene	40,321
#74	Patsy	40,282
#75	Joann	40,015
#76	Sarah	39,977
#77	Katherine	39,912
#78	Paula	39,044
#79	Annie	38,714
#80	Louise	38,665
#81	Roberta	38,051
#82	Sylvia	37,288
#83	Anne	36,146
#84	Theresa	35,789
#85	Sheila	35,740
#86	Maria	35,571
#87	Laura	35,071
#88	Kathy	34,766
#89	Eileen	34,695
#90	Marcia	34,397
#91	Rosemary	34,297
#92	Glenda	33,348
#93	Dolores	33,099
#94	Mildred	33,071
#95	Lorraine	33,047
#96	Marjorie	32,901
#97	Sherry	32,759
#98	Kay	32,654
#99	Anita	32,531
#100	Dianne	32,296

Top 100 boys’ names, 1940s

Rank	Name	Boys in decade
#1	James	795,775
#2	Robert	758,126
#3	John	711,614
#4	William	556,478
#5	Richard	477,476
#6	David	426,372
#7	Charles	361,772
#8	Thomas	350,775
#9	Michael	336,568
#10	Ronald	282,489
#11	Larry	255,908
#12	Donald	247,834
#13	Joseph	230,285
#14	Gary	217,772
#15	George	209,013
#16	Kenneth	198,553
#17	Paul	183,364
#18	Edward	174,801
#19	Jerry	167,257
#20	Dennis	162,114
#21	Frank	119,417
#22	Daniel	112,778
#23	Raymond	109,076
#24	Roger	107,602
#25	Stephen	106,812
#26	Gerald	103,342
#27	Walter	83,728
#28	Harold	82,176
#29	Steven	81,204
#30	Douglas	80,760
#31	Lawrence	80,461
#32	Terry	76,965
#33	Wayne	75,131
#34	Arthur	73,968
#35	Jack	73,919
#36	Carl	72,739
#37	Henry	72,488
#38	Willie	72,422
#39	Bruce	72,097
#40	Joe	72,015
#41	Peter	69,330
#42	Billy	67,833
#43	Roy	65,648
#44	Ralph	64,983
#45	Anthony	64,825
#46	Jimmy	63,523
#47	Albert	60,278
#48	Bobby	58,890
#49	Eugene	57,275
#50	Johnny	57,200
#51	Fred	56,665
#52	Harry	56,245
#53	Howard	53,530
#54	Mark	50,731
#55	Alan	50,302
#56	Louis	49,430
#57	Philip	48,735
#58	Patrick	48,619
#59	Dale	46,815
#60	Danny	46,661
#61	Stanley	46,263
#62	Leonard	44,289
#63	Timothy	43,503
#64	Gregory	43,222
#65	Samuel	43,129
#66	Ronnie	42,456
#67	Norman	42,164
#68	Ernest	41,762
#69	Russell	41,336
#70	Francis	39,519
#71	Melvin	39,236
#72	Earl	39,128
#73	Frederick	39,114
#74	Allen	39,049
#75	Bill	37,756
#76	Tommy	37,046
#77	Phillip	36,989
#78	Marvin	36,445
#79	Steve	36,286
#80	Don	36,255
#81	Clarence	36,197
#82	Barry	36,192
#83	Glenn	35,717
#84	Jim	35,632
#85	Eddie	34,807
#86	Mike	34,645
#87	Andrew	34,618
#88	Jeffrey	34,340
#89	Leroy	33,864
#90	Alfred	31,998
#91	Martin	31,402
#92	Lee	30,978
#93	Tom	29,884
#94	Ray	29,656
#95	Herbert	28,710
#96	Gene	27,739
#97	Bernard	26,446
#98	Theodore	26,249
#99	Curtis	26,009
#100	Keith	25,871