US baby names · 1894

Most popular baby names of 1894

In 1894, Social Security card applications recorded 222,922 girls and 115,768 boys born in the US under names given to at least five babies of the same sex. That covers 1,702 distinct girls’ names and 1,239 boys’ names.

The most common names were Mary (13,151 girls) and John (8,237 boys). The ten most common girls’ names together account for 20% of recorded girls, and the top ten boys’ names for 36% of boys. Compared with 1893, 13,467 more babies were recorded in total.

Against the top 100 of 1893, 1 girls’ names and 4 boys’ names in 1894 are newcomers (girls: Evelyn; boys: Everett, Norman, Horace). Of these names, 21 of the 100 girls’ names and 23 of the 100 boys’ names are still in the top 100 in 2025.

Ranks follow SSA’s order: most births first, with ties listed alphabetically. Each sparkline shows the name’s full history from 1880 to 2025, so you can see whether a 1894 favourite was rising, at its peak or already fading.

Top 100 girls’ names, 1894

RankNameGirlsBirths per year since 1880
#1Mary13,151
#2Anna5,565
#3Margaret3,700
#4Helen3,676
#5Elizabeth3,425
#6Ruth3,372
#7Ethel3,287
#8Florence3,233
#9Emma2,937
#10Marie2,649
#11Clara2,603
#12Minnie2,592
#13Bessie2,520
#14Bertha2,496
#15Edna2,458
#16Lillian2,441
#17Alice2,414
#18Annie2,393
#19Grace2,361
#20Mabel2,221
#21Ida2,195
#22Rose2,126
#23Hazel2,103
#24Martha1,968
#25Gertrude1,908
#26Edith1,820
#27Myrtle1,818
#28Pearl1,789
#29Frances1,776
#30Nellie1,767
#31Ella1,761
#32Laura1,730
#33Elsie1,716
#34Sarah1,701
#35Eva1,673
#36Esther1,654
#37Louise1,571
#38Agnes1,470
#39Carrie1,452
#40Lillie1,432
#41Catherine1,430
#42Lena1,360
#43Irene1,347
#44Hattie1,325
#45Julia1,320
#46Cora1,319
#47Gladys1,258
#48Josephine1,256
#49Mattie1,238
#50Mildred1,220
#51Jennie1,210
#52Alma1,177
#53Maude1,144
#54Mae1,134
#55Jessie1,120
#56Blanche1,091
#57Lucy1,077
#58Dorothy1,052
#59Mamie1,043
#60Lula1,042
#61Stella1,035
#62Ada1,018
#63Fannie1,003
#64Katherine948
#65Viola906
#66Maggie895
#67Ruby874
#68Nora854
#69Dora827
#70Rosa780
#71May763
#72Ellen759
#73Sadie745
#74Effie712
#75Willie709
#76Beatrice684
#77Della681
#78Susie679
#79Beulah675
#80Pauline656
#81Daisy645
#82Nettie630
#83Marguerite624
#84Flora619
#85Lydia618
#86Vera618
#87Lottie597
#88Olive589
#89Marion587
#90Sallie584
#91Virginia583
#92Lizzie562
#93Emily551
#94Georgia535
#95Katie525
#96Kathryn520
#97Etta519
#98Nancy515
#99Evelyn491
#100Charlotte484

Top 100 boys’ names, 1894

RankNameBoysBirths per year since 1880
#1John8,237
#2William7,274
#3James5,110
#4George4,365
#5Charles3,788
#6Joseph2,977
#7Frank2,863
#8Robert2,497
#9Henry2,278
#10Harry2,189
#11Edward2,179
#12Thomas2,170
#13Walter2,010
#14Arthur1,712
#15Fred1,475
#16Albert1,447
#17Clarence1,185
#18Roy1,018
#19Willie986
#20Earl896
#21Louis869
#22Carl861
#23Paul824
#24Ernest821
#25Richard808
#26Samuel776
#27Raymond767
#28Joe741
#29David729
#30Charlie704
#31Ralph692
#32Harold690
#33Howard612
#34Oscar601
#35Andrew594
#36Herbert585
#37Elmer575
#38Jesse567
#39Will559
#40Alfred521
#41Daniel515
#42Leo515
#43Sam507
#44Benjamin469
#45Lee455
#46Floyd445
#47Jack441
#48Herman433
#49Lawrence430
#50Francis423
#51Michael423
#52Eugene421
#53Claude419
#54Frederick413
#55Peter391
#56Clyde386
#57Ray379
#58Edwin366
#59Lewis359
#60Leonard343
#61Tom343
#62Ben326
#63Chester325
#64Edgar313
#65Clifford307
#66Martin299
#67Harvey293
#68Jacob292
#69Lester291
#70Jim287
#71Luther285
#72Russell278
#73Homer273
#74Otto270
#75Hugh269
#76Guy261
#77Anthony257
#78Bernard256
#79Jessie255
#80Lloyd253
#81Ed241
#82Theodore241
#83Leroy239
#84Leon236
#85Patrick229
#86Everett226
#87Leslie223
#88Oliver222
#89Allen219
#90Stanley218
#91Philip214
#92Archie207
#93Ira206
#94Eddie203
#95Alexander199
#96Norman199
#97Horace196
#98Bert187
#99Charley186
#100Victor180