Most Popular Baby Names of 1917

In 1917, Mary was the most popular name for girls, given to 64,280 babies, and John topped the boys' list with 51,852. Mary held on to number one for a 38th year in a row, and John held on to number one for a 38th year in a row.

Social Security counted 1,081,267 girls and 925,482 boys born in 1917 under names given to at least five babies, spread across 5,310 different girls' names and 4,602 boys' names.

Top 100 names of 1917

Top girls' names, 1917
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1916
1	Mary	64,280	same
2	Helen	34,251	same
3	Dorothy	28,852	same
4	Margaret	25,560	same
5	Ruth	23,568	same
6	Mildred	16,256	same
7	Anna	15,160	same
8	Elizabeth	15,131	same
9	Frances	14,363	same
10	Virginia	14,261	same
11	Evelyn	12,532	same
12	Marie	11,813	same
13	Alice	10,990	same
14	Florence	10,538	same
15	Lillian	9,843	up 1
16	Rose	9,783	down 1
17	Irene	9,163	same
18	Catherine	8,689	up 2
19	Louise	8,584	down 1
20	Edna	8,422	down 1
21	Josephine	8,326	same
22	Martha	8,261	up 2
23	Gladys	8,075	down 1
24	Ethel	7,865	up 1
25	Doris	7,819	up 7
26	Eleanor	7,669	up 1
27	Ruby	7,662	down 4
28	Edith	7,532	same
29	Lucille	7,529	up 1
30	Grace	7,373	down 4
31	Hazel	7,285	same
32	Thelma	7,245	down 3
33	Pauline	6,896	same
34	Betty	6,639	up 10
35	Annie	6,404	up 1
36	Marjorie	6,399	up 1
37	Gertrude	6,300	down 2
38	Esther	6,281	down 4
39	Beatrice	5,839	down 1
40	Jean	5,692	up 5
41	Clara	5,626	down 2
42	Bernice	5,546	same
43	Lois	5,485	same
44	Ann	5,455	down 4
45	Marion	5,371	up 2
46	Emma	5,121	down 5
47	Julia	5,078	down 1
48	Agnes	5,066	up 2
49	Katherine	4,956	up 2
50	Elsie	4,939	down 2
51	Bertha	4,881	down 2
52	Sarah	4,766	same
53	Anne	4,603	same
54	Eva	4,286	up 1
55	Jane	4,258	up 7
56	Ida	4,247	down 2
57	Pearl	4,232	same
58	Myrtle	4,046	same
59	Viola	4,040	same
60	Kathryn	3,984	same
61	Bessie	3,927	down 5
62	Stella	3,872	up 1
63	Rita	3,870	up 4
64	Nellie	3,808	down 3
65	Laura	3,807	down 1
66	Vera	3,714	same
67	Barbara	3,535	up 7
68	Mabel	3,499	down 3
69	Sylvia	3,469	same
70	Jessie	3,465	down 2
71	Alma	3,407	down 1
72	Willie	3,381	up 1
73	June	3,370	up 13
74	Marian	3,267	down 2
75	Minnie	3,262	down 4
76	Charlotte	3,229	up 4
77	Genevieve	3,192	down 1
78	Marguerite	3,161	same
79	Vivian	3,119	down 2
80	Leona	3,115	down 5
81	Jennie	3,109	down 2
82	Wilma	3,071	same
83	Ella	3,054	down 2
84	Violet	3,026	down 1
85	Lena	3,004	same
86	Lillie	2,931	up 2
87	Juanita	2,929	up 3
88	Lucy	2,929	down 4
89	Geraldine	2,897	up 5
90	Ellen	2,855	down 3
91	Blanche	2,836	down 2
92	Phyllis	2,696	up 3
93	Maxine	2,647	up 3
94	Mattie	2,572	down 1
95	Opal	2,541	down 4
96	Mae	2,507	down 4
97	Theresa	2,490	up 1
98	Nancy	2,411	up 4
99	Velma	2,411	same
100	Sophie	2,382	up 1

Top boys' names, 1917
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1916
1	John	51,852	same
2	William	42,422	same
3	James	37,337	same
4	Robert	35,220	same
5	Joseph	24,761	same
6	George	24,196	up 1
7	Charles	24,143	down 1
8	Edward	17,501	same
9	Frank	15,768	same
10	Thomas	12,611	same
11	Walter	12,582	same
12	Harold	11,194	up 1
13	Paul	11,156	down 1
14	Richard	10,914	up 1
15	Henry	10,696	down 1
16	Raymond	9,956	same
17	Arthur	9,282	up 1
18	Albert	9,157	down 1
19	Harry	8,856	same
20	Donald	8,729	same
21	Ralph	7,391	same
22	Jack	6,875	up 4
23	Louis	6,771	down 1
24	Carl	6,699	down 1
25	Clarence	6,587	down 1
26	Howard	6,410	down 1
27	Kenneth	6,141	same
28	David	6,099	same
29	Fred	5,986	same
30	Francis	5,801	up 1
31	Willie	5,751	down 1
32	Earl	5,632	same
33	Roy	5,586	same
34	Stanley	5,186	same
35	Joe	5,142	same
36	Lawrence	5,094	up 2
37	Ernest	5,055	down 1
38	Anthony	5,027	down 1
39	Eugene	4,873	same
40	Herbert	4,745	same
41	Leonard	4,694	up 1
42	Samuel	4,490	down 1
43	Alfred	4,424	same
44	Michael	4,288	same
45	Elmer	3,812	same
46	Norman	3,788	up 2
47	Leo	3,779	same
48	Andrew	3,752	down 2
49	Bernard	3,711	same
50	Peter	3,464	same
51	Frederick	3,455	up 1
52	Russell	3,436	down 1
53	Lloyd	3,417	up 5
54	Daniel	3,360	up 1
55	Edwin	3,346	down 2
56	Chester	3,338	down 2
57	Melvin	3,155	same
58	Herman	2,974	down 2
59	Clifford	2,969	up 2
60	Leroy	2,951	up 3
61	Lester	2,854	down 2
62	Floyd	2,820	down 2
63	Theodore	2,809	up 2
64	Clyde	2,719	down 2
65	Vincent	2,636	up 2
66	Philip	2,544	up 4
67	Charlie	2,536	up 1
68	Marvin	2,517	down 2
69	Gerald	2,486	up 7
70	Lewis	2,477	up 1
71	Vernon	2,463	up 4
72	Sam	2,454	up 2
73	Woodrow	2,428	down 9
74	Ray	2,426	down 1
75	Milton	2,394	down 3
76	Benjamin	2,386	up 3
77	Martin	2,336	up 4
78	Victor	2,207	same
79	Jesse	2,200	down 2
80	Willard	2,188	down 11
81	Alvin	2,142	up 1
82	Leon	2,102	up 3
83	Cecil	2,101	down 3
84	Gordon	2,019	up 6
85	Lee	2,004	down 2
86	Glenn	1,997	down 2
87	Oscar	1,961	down 1
88	Edgar	1,920	same
89	Stephen	1,892	down 2
90	Harvey	1,808	up 2
91	Arnold	1,781	down 2
92	Wilbur	1,749	up 2
93	Warren	1,743	up 9
94	Everett	1,734	down 3
95	Sidney	1,727	same
96	Wayne	1,715	up 2
97	Alexander	1,664	up 2
98	Claude	1,625	down 5
99	Morris	1,624	down 2
100	Allen	1,592	up 1

Biggest climbers in 1917

The names that gained the most ground within the top 1,000 compared with 1916.

Girls

Sammie: up 224 places, from 913th to 689th
Lavern: up 165 places, from 853rd to 688th
Lavonne: up 163 places, from 773rd to 610th
Yvette: up 143 places, from 774th to 631st
Juana: up 143 places, from 821st to 678th
Rosemarie: up 142 places, from 730th to 588th
Doretha: up 138 places, from 897th to 759th
Mafalda: up 138 places, from 933rd to 795th
Tena: up 135 places, from 990th to 855th
Patsy: up 132 places, from 603rd to 471st

Boys

Shelton: up 272 places, from 963rd to 691st
Enrique: up 220 places, from 926th to 706th
Murry: up 217 places, from 831st to 614th
Franklyn: up 198 places, from 827th to 629th
Benito: up 190 places, from 964th to 774th
Danny: up 188 places, from 974th to 786th
Glendon: up 177 places, from 879th to 702nd
Garth: up 176 places, from 865th to 689th
Tillman: up 170 places, from 875th to 705th
Regis: up 168 places, from 769th to 601st

New to the top 1,000 in 1917

Girls

Eloisa, 785th (back after dropping out)
Verlie, 791st (back after dropping out)
Gaynell, 837th (back after dropping out)
Olympia, 854th (back after dropping out)
Dominga, 862nd (back after dropping out)
Romaine, 864th (back after dropping out)
Alline, 867th (back after dropping out)
Malvina, 871st (back after dropping out)
Sandra, 877th (back after dropping out)
Georgetta, 883rd (its first time ever)

Boys

Alec, 749th (back after dropping out)
Ignacio, 763rd (back after dropping out)
Nicolas, 790th (back after dropping out)
Christ, 808th (back after dropping out)
Dillard, 810th (back after dropping out)
Godfrey, 812th (back after dropping out)
Nunzio, 831st (back after dropping out)
Finley, 841st (back after dropping out)
Hampton, 842nd (back after dropping out)
Rueben, 845th (back after dropping out)

How spread out were names in 1917?

The ten most popular girls' names went to 23.3% of the girls counted in 1917, and the top ten boys' names to 30.9% of the boys. In 1897, those shares were 20.1% for girls and 35.2% 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.