Most Popular Baby Names of 1912

In 1912, Mary was the most popular name for girls, given to 32,304 babies, and John topped the boys' list with 24,588. Mary held on to number one for a 33rd year in a row, and John held on to number one for a 33rd year in a row.

Social Security counted 558,119 girls and 429,942 boys born in 1912 under names given to at least five babies, spread across 3,445 different girls' names and 2,905 boys' names.

Top 100 names of 1912

Top girls' names, 1912
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1911
1	Mary	32,304	same
2	Helen	16,133	same
3	Dorothy	12,645	up 1
4	Margaret	12,536	down 1
5	Ruth	11,280	same
6	Mildred	8,764	up 2
7	Anna	8,586	down 1
8	Elizabeth	8,527	down 1
9	Frances	6,680	up 1
10	Marie	6,642	down 1
11	Alice	6,285	same
12	Florence	5,739	same
13	Evelyn	5,620	up 3
14	Lillian	5,568	down 1
15	Rose	5,431	down 1
16	Edna	5,136	up 1
17	Louise	5,116	up 2
18	Ethel	5,073	down 3
19	Gladys	4,980	down 1
20	Virginia	4,810	up 6
21	Catherine	4,666	down 1
22	Irene	4,646	down 1
23	Ruby	4,452	down 1
24	Grace	4,418	down 1
25	Hazel	4,197	same
26	Thelma	4,183	up 1
27	Annie	4,083	down 3
28	Josephine	3,980	up 1
29	Martha	3,911	down 1
30	Gertrude	3,887	same
31	Edith	3,842	same
32	Lucille	3,763	same
33	Esther	3,569	up 1
34	Clara	3,480	down 1
35	Emma	3,357	same
36	Bertha	3,288	same
37	Beatrice	3,205	same
38	Pauline	3,163	same
39	Eleanor	3,120	up 10
40	Agnes	2,945	down 1
41	Sarah	2,919	up 1
42	Elsie	2,895	down 1
43	Bessie	2,832	down 3
44	Julia	2,825	same
45	Ida	2,740	same
46	Mabel	2,714	down 3
47	Ann	2,666	up 6
48	Doris	2,657	up 8
49	Eva	2,636	down 3
50	Myrtle	2,599	same
51	Bernice	2,593	same
52	Viola	2,550	down 5
53	Katherine	2,546	up 2
54	Pearl	2,528	down 6
55	Marion	2,522	up 3
56	Marjorie	2,468	up 3
57	Laura	2,413	same
58	Anne	2,369	up 6
59	Nellie	2,365	down 5
60	Minnie	2,295	down 8
61	Willie	2,267	same
62	Alma	2,183	same
63	Lois	2,146	up 5
64	Jean	2,056	up 10
65	Jessie	2,052	up 1
66	Betty	2,011	up 3
67	Lillie	2,003	down 7
68	Vera	1,974	down 1
69	Ella	1,921	down 6
70	Mattie	1,915	down 5
71	Kathryn	1,905	up 2
72	Lena	1,903	down 2
73	Stella	1,834	down 1
74	Mae	1,775	down 3
75	Blanche	1,761	same
76	Leona	1,650	same
77	Sylvia	1,639	up 5
78	Lucy	1,636	down 1
79	Marguerite	1,620	up 8
80	Beulah	1,607	down 1
81	Jennie	1,595	up 4
82	Carrie	1,580	down 4
83	Violet	1,535	same
84	Vivian	1,487	down 4
85	Opal	1,465	down 4
86	Ellen	1,449	down 2
87	Fannie	1,425	up 1
88	Velma	1,403	up 2
89	Jane	1,390	up 9
90	Hattie	1,389	down 4
91	Charlotte	1,375	up 4
92	Genevieve	1,353	up 1
93	Marian	1,313	up 12
94	Rosa	1,305	down 2
95	Mamie	1,273	down 6
96	Ada	1,268	up 1
97	Theresa	1,268	up 3
98	Cora	1,253	down 7
99	Wilma	1,241	up 3
100	Inez	1,228	down 1

Top boys' names, 1912
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1911
1	John	24,588	same
2	William	19,626	same
3	James	17,644	same
4	Robert	12,836	up 1
5	Joseph	12,062	up 1
6	George	11,734	down 2
7	Charles	11,070	same
8	Edward	7,936	up 1
9	Frank	7,912	down 1
10	Thomas	6,087	same
11	Walter	5,809	up 1
12	Henry	5,643	down 1
13	Harold	5,102	up 3
14	Paul	4,785	up 3
15	Arthur	4,685	up 3
16	Harry	4,624	down 3
17	Albert	4,587	down 2
18	Raymond	4,374	up 1
19	Richard	4,188	up 1
20	Louis	3,591	up 1
21	Clarence	3,590	up 2
22	Willie	3,508	down 8
23	Ralph	3,435	up 1
24	Carl	3,224	up 2
25	Howard	3,212	up 3
26	Fred	3,103	down 4
27	Donald	2,872	up 9
28	Jack	2,870	down 3
29	David	2,858	down 2
30	Samuel	2,602	same
31	Roy	2,591	same
32	Ernest	2,569	same
33	Kenneth	2,538	up 7
34	Earl	2,518	same
35	Francis	2,516	down 2
36	Joe	2,515	down 7
37	Anthony	2,480	down 2
38	Lawrence	2,467	down 1
39	Herbert	2,236	up 2
40	Alfred	2,210	down 1
41	Eugene	2,114	up 2
42	Michael	2,104	down 4
43	Stanley	2,017	up 1
44	Andrew	1,946	down 2
45	Leonard	1,928	up 1
46	Woodrow	1,843	up 188
47	Elmer	1,840	up 1
48	Peter	1,679	up 2
49	Leo	1,654	up 2
50	Herman	1,646	down 1
51	Frederick	1,564	up 1
52	Theodore	1,561	up 4
53	Daniel	1,524	same
54	Edwin	1,518	up 6
55	Chester	1,460	up 3
56	Russell	1,449	down 1
57	Charlie	1,446	down 12
58	Lester	1,443	up 7
59	Floyd	1,438	down 2
60	Bernard	1,437	down 6
61	Norman	1,367	up 2
62	Clifford	1,345	same
63	Sam	1,325	down 16
64	Milton	1,319	up 6
65	Clyde	1,314	down 4
66	Leroy	1,306	down 7
67	Benjamin	1,272	down 3
68	Lewis	1,247	down 2
69	Philip	1,237	same
70	Lloyd	1,227	up 4
71	Melvin	1,185	up 2
72	Vincent	1,178	up 8
73	Oscar	1,157	down 5
74	Jesse	1,106	down 2
75	Martin	1,064	same
76	Cecil	1,058	same
77	Ray	1,050	down 6
78	Lee	1,030	down 11
79	Leon	1,006	down 2
80	Sidney	1,003	up 12
81	Victor	989	same
82	Morris	960	up 3
83	Marvin	958	down 1
84	Glenn	948	up 27
85	Edgar	945	down 2
86	Alvin	929	up 3
87	Gerald	929	up 1
88	Stephen	928	down 4
89	Claude	890	down 2
90	Vernon	889	up 6
91	Harvey	875	same
92	Wilbur	832	up 9
93	Gordon	822	up 4
94	Irving	815	down 1
95	Maurice	811	up 4
96	Everett	806	up 6
97	Alexander	803	down 3
98	Homer	794	down 3
99	Arnold	767	up 9
100	Julius	758	up 4

Biggest climbers in 1912

The names that gained the most ground within the top 1,000 compared with 1911.

Girls

Norine: up 358 places, from 975th to 617th
Freeda: up 243 places, from 993rd to 750th
Florene: up 199 places, from 911th to 712th
Palma: up 193 places, from 977th to 784th
Hildegard: up 192 places, from 943rd to 751st
Elmira: up 186 places, from 758th to 572nd
Olevia: up 184 places, from 976th to 792nd
Versie: up 175 places, from 955th to 780th
Marianne: up 174 places, from 684th to 510th
Tomasa: up 173 places, from 929th to 756th

Boys

Guido: up 352 places, from 948th to 596th
Darrel: up 347 places, from 997th to 650th
Loyal: up 331 places, from 962nd to 631st
Orrin: up 321 places, from 966th to 645th
Verne: up 318 places, from 976th to 658th
Beryl: up 314 places, from 899th to 585th
Archibald: up 305 places, from 861st to 556th
Finis: up 293 places, from 1000th to 707th
Olaf: up 287 places, from 965th to 678th
Urban: up 284 places, from 974th to 690th

New to the top 1,000 in 1912

Girls

Ardis, 710th (back after dropping out)
Nella, 761st (back after dropping out)
Twila, 762nd (back after dropping out)
Noma, 778th (back after dropping out)
Elizebeth, 782nd (back after dropping out)
Yvette, 794th (its first time ever)
Romaine, 804th (back after dropping out)
Rosalyn, 805th (back after dropping out)
Walter, 808th (back after dropping out)
Cleora, 812th (back after dropping out)

Boys

Elwyn, 595th (back after dropping out)
Carlyle, 610th (back after dropping out)
Gerhard, 642nd (back after dropping out)
Rollin, 679th (back after dropping out)
Galen, 682nd (back after dropping out)
Huey, 710th (back after dropping out)
Carrol, 716th (back after dropping out)
Josiah, 719th (back after dropping out)
Ivy, 726th (back after dropping out)
Kyle, 727th (back after dropping out)

How spread out were names in 1912?

The ten most popular girls' names went to 22.2% of the girls counted in 1912, and the top ten boys' names to 30.6% of the boys. In 1892, those shares were 20.6% for girls and 37% for boys.

Source: Social Security Administration, national baby name data, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.