Most Popular Baby Names of 1918

In 1918, Mary was the most popular name for girls, given to 67,365 babies, and John topped the boys' list with 56,558. Mary held on to number one for a 39th year in a row, and John held on to number one for a 39th year in a row.

Social Security counted 1,157,631 girls and 1,013,480 boys born in 1918 under names given to at least five babies, spread across 5,585 different girls' names and 4,813 boys' names.

Top 100 names of 1918

Top girls' names, 1918
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1917
1	Mary	67,365	same
2	Helen	36,148	same
3	Dorothy	32,030	same
4	Margaret	27,139	same
5	Ruth	25,535	same
6	Mildred	17,258	same
7	Virginia	16,421	up 3
8	Frances	16,132	up 1
9	Elizabeth	15,853	down 1
10	Anna	15,666	down 3
11	Evelyn	13,493	same
12	Marie	12,589	same
13	Alice	11,590	same
14	Florence	11,318	same
15	Lillian	9,986	same
16	Irene	9,774	up 1
17	Rose	9,568	down 1
18	Louise	9,111	up 1
19	Doris	9,061	up 6
20	Catherine	8,842	down 2
21	Betty	8,803	up 13
22	Gladys	8,734	up 1
23	Edna	8,698	down 3
24	Josephine	8,682	down 3
25	Martha	8,341	down 3
26	Eleanor	8,176	same
27	Ruby	8,134	same
28	Ethel	8,075	down 4
29	Lucille	7,902	same
30	Edith	7,858	down 2
31	Grace	7,770	down 1
32	Thelma	7,740	same
33	Hazel	7,615	down 2
34	Marjorie	7,517	up 2
35	Pauline	7,222	down 2
36	Annie	6,743	down 1
37	Jean	6,600	up 3
38	Esther	6,574	same
39	Gertrude	6,264	down 2
40	Beatrice	5,907	down 1
41	Bernice	5,892	up 1
42	Lois	5,877	up 1
43	Clara	5,778	down 2
44	Ann	5,613	same
45	Marion	5,583	same
46	Emma	5,324	same
47	Agnes	5,291	up 1
48	Julia	5,268	down 1
49	Elsie	5,194	up 1
50	Katherine	5,191	down 1
51	Bertha	5,051	same
52	Sarah	4,969	same
53	Jane	4,730	up 2
54	Anne	4,567	down 1
55	Eva	4,563	down 1
56	Pearl	4,521	up 1
57	Ida	4,450	down 1
58	Rita	4,447	up 5
59	Viola	4,331	same
60	Barbara	4,224	up 7
61	Bessie	4,101	same
62	Myrtle	4,076	down 4
63	Kathryn	4,068	down 3
64	Laura	4,062	up 1
65	Nellie	4,048	down 1
66	June	4,034	up 7
67	Stella	3,928	down 5
68	Vera	3,923	down 2
69	Lorraine	3,876	up 47
70	Willie	3,867	up 2
71	Sylvia	3,675	down 2
72	Vivian	3,663	up 7
73	Alma	3,650	down 2
74	Mabel	3,636	down 6
75	Jessie	3,591	down 5
76	Marian	3,503	down 2
77	Geraldine	3,446	up 12
78	Charlotte	3,373	down 2
79	Leona	3,335	up 1
80	Phyllis	3,326	up 12
81	Genevieve	3,304	down 4
82	Wilma	3,298	same
83	Violet	3,294	up 1
84	Ella	3,291	down 1
85	Juanita	3,260	up 2
86	Marguerite	3,249	down 8
87	Maxine	3,216	up 6
88	Minnie	3,181	down 13
89	Lillie	3,112	down 3
90	Lucy	3,108	down 2
91	Jennie	3,033	down 10
92	Ellen	3,030	down 2
93	Lena	2,937	down 8
94	Opal	2,847	up 1
95	Mae	2,756	up 1
96	Blanche	2,739	down 5
97	Shirley	2,654	up 26
98	Norma	2,653	up 10
99	Kathleen	2,629	up 2
100	Mattie	2,610	down 6

Top boys' names, 1918
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1917
1	John	56,558	same
2	William	45,291	same
3	James	42,115	same
4	Robert	40,619	same
5	Charles	26,921	up 2
6	George	26,318	same
7	Joseph	26,261	down 2
8	Edward	19,489	same
9	Frank	17,018	same
10	Thomas	13,910	same
11	Walter	13,338	same
12	Richard	12,323	up 2
13	Harold	12,185	down 1
14	Paul	11,755	down 1
15	Raymond	11,604	up 1
16	Henry	11,354	down 1
17	Arthur	10,105	same
18	Donald	9,972	up 2
19	Albert	9,935	down 1
20	Harry	9,896	down 1
21	Jack	8,341	up 1
22	Ralph	8,162	down 1
23	Clarence	7,187	up 2
24	Louis	7,082	down 1
25	Carl	7,004	down 1
26	Howard	6,928	same
27	Kenneth	6,809	same
28	David	6,627	same
29	Willie	6,537	up 2
30	Francis	6,347	same
31	Earl	6,321	up 1
32	Roy	6,211	up 1
33	Fred	6,182	down 4
34	Joe	5,805	up 1
35	Eugene	5,631	up 4
36	Stanley	5,618	down 2
37	Ernest	5,527	same
38	Lawrence	5,372	down 2
39	Anthony	5,168	down 1
40	Herbert	5,128	same
41	Leonard	4,980	same
42	Alfred	4,873	up 1
43	Samuel	4,772	down 1
44	Elmer	4,373	up 1
45	Michael	4,296	down 1
46	Andrew	4,138	up 2
47	Bernard	4,098	up 2
48	Leo	4,036	down 1
49	Norman	3,867	down 3
50	Russell	3,833	up 2
51	Lloyd	3,742	up 2
52	Daniel	3,726	up 2
53	Peter	3,711	down 3
54	Chester	3,692	up 2
55	Edwin	3,487	same
56	Melvin	3,469	up 1
57	Leroy	3,422	up 3
58	Woodrow	3,358	up 15
59	Frederick	3,351	down 8
60	Clifford	3,299	down 1
61	Floyd	3,235	up 1
62	Lester	3,229	down 1
63	Victor	3,183	up 15
64	Theodore	3,143	down 1
65	Herman	3,041	down 7
66	Vernon	2,971	up 5
67	Clyde	2,917	down 3
68	Marvin	2,829	same
69	Ray	2,763	up 5
70	Charlie	2,743	down 3
71	Philip	2,733	down 5
72	Gerald	2,712	down 3
73	Vincent	2,621	down 8
74	Lewis	2,593	down 4
75	Sam	2,506	down 3
76	Milton	2,454	down 1
77	Leon	2,442	up 5
78	Jesse	2,433	up 1
79	Benjamin	2,431	down 3
80	Alvin	2,409	up 1
81	Martin	2,403	down 4
82	Cecil	2,328	up 1
83	Willard	2,311	down 3
84	Glenn	2,253	up 2
85	Gordon	2,233	down 1
86	Lee	2,159	down 1
87	Oscar	2,113	same
88	Harvey	2,111	up 2
89	Edgar	2,085	down 1
90	Warren	1,990	up 3
91	Wayne	1,912	up 5
92	Arnold	1,910	down 1
93	Everett	1,891	up 1
94	Sidney	1,879	up 1
95	Claude	1,878	up 3
96	Stephen	1,843	down 7
97	Wilbur	1,800	down 5
98	Allen	1,779	up 2
99	Virgil	1,707	up 4
100	Homer	1,680	up 2

Biggest climbers in 1918

The names that gained the most ground within the top 1,000 compared with 1917.

Girls

Syble: up 310 places, from 811th to 501st
Sibyl: up 249 places, from 629th to 380th
Bernita: up 240 places, from 979th to 739th
Rozella: up 168 places, from 963rd to 795th
Jonnie: up 164 places, from 992nd to 828th
Marcelle: up 149 places, from 742nd to 593rd
Vernell: up 141 places, from 856th to 715th
Waneta: up 141 places, from 895th to 754th
Theola: up 137 places, from 995th to 858th
Nita: up 128 places, from 737th to 609th

Boys

Pershing: up 548 places, from 882nd to 334th
Quentin: up 493 places, from 736th to 243rd
Gaston: up 208 places, from 894th to 686th
Bradley: up 208 places, from 910th to 702nd
Craig: up 180 places, from 833rd to 653rd
Ruby: up 176 places, from 897th to 721st
Rodger: up 173 places, from 961st to 788th
Lawerence: up 164 places, from 828th to 664th
Winford: up 163 places, from 820th to 657th
Bryant: up 163 places, from 855th to 692nd

New to the top 1,000 in 1918

Girls

Liberty, 585th (its first time ever)
Verdie, 808th (back after dropping out)
Victory, 814th (its first time ever)
Nella, 838th (back after dropping out)
Goldia, 857th (back after dropping out)
Beverley, 879th (its first time ever)
Arthur, 886th (back after dropping out)
Santina, 892nd (back after dropping out)
Concepcion, 894th (back after dropping out)
Jamie, 898th (back after dropping out)

Boys

Quinton, 494th (back after dropping out)
Furman, 756th (back after dropping out)
Casey, 825th (back after dropping out)
Ewell, 827th (back after dropping out)
Issac, 829th (back after dropping out)
Almon, 857th (back after dropping out)
Dell, 873rd (back after dropping out)
Foch, 874th (its first time ever)
Jones, 876th (back after dropping out)
Kay, 877th (back after dropping out)

How spread out were names in 1918?

The ten most popular girls' names went to 23.3% of the girls counted in 1918, and the top ten boys' names to 31% of the boys. In 1898, those shares were 20% for girls and 34.9% 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.