Most Popular Baby Names of 1921

In 1921, Mary was the most popular name for girls, given to 73,984 babies, and John topped the boys' list with 58,216. Mary held on to number one for a 42nd year in a row, and John held on to number one for a 42nd year in a row.

Social Security counted 1,233,058 girls and 1,101,449 boys born in 1921 under names given to at least five babies, spread across 5,871 different girls' names and 4,985 boys' names.

Top 100 names of 1921

Top girls' names, 1921
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1920
1	Mary	73,984	same
2	Dorothy	39,087	same
3	Helen	34,822	same
4	Margaret	28,468	same
5	Ruth	25,783	same
6	Virginia	19,032	up 1
7	Mildred	17,880	down 1
8	Betty	17,638	up 3
9	Frances	15,993	same
10	Elizabeth	15,800	down 2
11	Anna	14,476	down 1
12	Evelyn	14,278	same
13	Doris	13,152	up 1
14	Marie	12,501	down 1
15	Alice	11,955	same
16	Marjorie	11,209	up 8
17	Florence	10,720	down 1
18	Irene	10,624	down 1
19	Lillian	9,770	down 1
20	Rose	9,352	same
21	Martha	9,264	up 2
22	Louise	9,180	down 3
23	Catherine	8,887	down 2
24	Gladys	8,814	down 2
25	Jean	8,592	up 8
26	Ruby	8,333	same
27	Edna	8,302	same
28	Josephine	8,135	same
29	Eleanor	8,054	down 4
30	Thelma	7,839	up 1
31	Lucille	7,698	down 2
32	Ethel	7,603	down 2
33	Edith	7,589	down 1
34	Hazel	7,341	same
35	Grace	7,230	up 2
36	Annie	7,209	down 1
37	Pauline	7,142	down 1
38	Lois	6,899	same
39	Bernice	6,190	up 1
40	Barbara	6,013	up 7
41	Beatrice	5,968	same
42	Esther	5,926	down 3
43	Marion	5,814	same
44	Shirley	5,695	up 12
45	Clara	5,606	down 1
46	Gertrude	5,349	down 4
47	Jane	5,188	up 1
48	Rita	5,157	up 4
49	Katherine	5,156	down 4
50	June	5,155	up 3
51	Norma	5,102	up 18
52	Emma	5,072	down 6
53	Ann	5,058	down 4
54	Sarah	5,024	down 4
55	Elsie	4,879	down 4
56	Agnes	4,798	down 2
57	Juanita	4,779	up 4
58	Julia	4,737	down 3
59	Bertha	4,608	down 2
60	Phyllis	4,590	up 12
61	Lorraine	4,533	up 9
62	Geraldine	4,523	down 2
63	Eva	4,325	down 5
64	Kathryn	4,201	up 3
65	Pearl	4,175	down 3
66	Viola	4,160	down 7
67	Ida	4,146	down 1
68	Vivian	4,103	down 4
69	Marian	4,064	up 4
70	Anne	4,007	down 5
71	Laura	3,998	down 8
72	Wilma	3,824	up 6
73	Myrtle	3,791	down 5
74	Willie	3,748	same
75	Bessie	3,678	down 4
76	Vera	3,631	down 1
77	Maxine	3,630	up 4
78	Alma	3,589	up 2
79	Charlotte	3,587	same
80	Nellie	3,513	down 4
81	Violet	3,469	down 4
82	Audrey	3,434	up 21
83	Kathleen	3,419	up 8
84	Patricia	3,380	up 20
85	Mabel	3,336	down 2
86	Stella	3,335	down 4
87	Nancy	3,323	up 8
88	Sylvia	3,297	down 3
89	Ella	3,237	down 1
90	Genevieve	3,235	down 4
91	Jessie	3,225	down 7
92	Leona	3,210	down 3
93	Lucy	3,157	up 1
94	Lillie	3,118	down 4
95	Ellen	3,064	down 3
96	Minnie	2,998	down 9
97	Elaine	2,922	up 10
98	Marguerite	2,897	down 5
99	Jennie	2,889	down 2
100	Eileen	2,862	same

Top boys' names, 1921
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1920
1	John	58,216	same
2	Robert	52,779	up 1
3	William	51,862	down 1
4	James	49,750	same
5	Charles	29,242	same
6	George	27,476	same
7	Joseph	26,182	same
8	Edward	20,817	same
9	Frank	16,705	same
10	Richard	16,376	same
11	Thomas	15,308	same
12	Harold	13,811	same
13	Donald	13,776	up 3
14	Paul	13,169	same
15	Walter	13,004	down 2
16	Raymond	12,645	down 1
17	Henry	11,411	same
18	Jack	10,757	up 2
19	Arthur	10,527	down 1
20	Albert	10,158	down 1
21	Harry	9,731	same
22	Kenneth	8,959	up 1
23	Ralph	8,860	down 1
24	Warren	7,798	up 15
25	David	7,765	same
26	Eugene	7,717	up 4
27	Howard	7,713	down 3
28	Clarence	7,332	down 2
29	Louis	7,247	down 1
30	Carl	7,077	down 3
31	Earl	6,754	same
32	Roy	6,545	same
33	Fred	6,496	same
34	Willie	6,492	down 5
35	Francis	6,293	down 1
36	Joe	6,204	down 1
37	Lawrence	5,977	down 1
38	Ernest	5,697	down 1
39	Leonard	5,650	down 1
40	Anthony	5,239	up 3
41	Stanley	5,231	down 1
42	Herbert	5,217	down 1
43	Alfred	4,925	down 1
44	Samuel	4,754	same
45	Bernard	4,485	up 1
46	Norman	4,479	up 1
47	Michael	4,198	up 3
48	Elmer	4,146	down 3
49	Daniel	4,087	up 3
50	Leo	4,066	down 2
51	Andrew	4,015	down 2
52	Russell	3,946	down 1
53	Melvin	3,887	up 1
54	Edwin	3,750	down 1
55	Leroy	3,749	up 1
56	Chester	3,549	down 1
57	Peter	3,548	same
58	Lloyd	3,536	same
59	Marvin	3,490	up 3
60	Gerald	3,382	up 4
61	Frederick	3,376	down 1
62	Clifford	3,262	down 3
63	Floyd	3,255	down 2
64	Herman	3,219	up 2
65	Theodore	3,172	down 2
66	Lester	3,076	up 3
67	Ray	3,075	same
68	Vernon	3,069	down 3
69	Clyde	3,022	down 1
70	Vincent	2,779	up 3
71	Lewis	2,712	up 1
72	Philip	2,703	down 1
73	Alvin	2,686	up 3
74	Leon	2,616	up 1
75	Milton	2,588	down 1
76	Charlie	2,574	down 6
77	Jesse	2,486	up 2
78	Martin	2,461	same
79	Cecil	2,456	down 2
80	Glenn	2,449	same
81	Wayne	2,417	up 5
82	Benjamin	2,412	up 1
83	Victor	2,407	down 2
84	Gordon	2,382	up 1
85	Sam	2,367	down 1
86	Lee	2,354	down 4
87	Harvey	2,287	same
88	Wallace	2,095	up 5
89	Willard	2,077	down 1
90	Edgar	2,014	down 1
91	Arnold	1,982	same
92	Oscar	1,978	down 2
93	Dale	1,956	up 12
94	Allen	1,937	same
95	Everett	1,913	same
96	Claude	1,887	down 4
97	Stephen	1,868	down 1
98	Virgil	1,830	up 3
99	Roger	1,803	up 4
100	Wilbur	1,755	down 2

Biggest climbers in 1921

The names that gained the most ground within the top 1,000 compared with 1920.

Girls

Henry: up 152 places, from 897th to 745th
Annetta: up 148 places, from 751st to 603rd
Lurline: up 146 places, from 1000th to 854th
Nella: up 142 places, from 976th to 834th
Frank: up 130 places, from 907th to 777th
Maryjane: up 128 places, from 686th to 558th
Luisa: up 126 places, from 999th to 873rd
Loma: up 124 places, from 983rd to 859th
Adrienne: up 123 places, from 780th to 657th
Palma: up 123 places, from 871st to 748th

Boys

Dante: up 265 places, from 827th to 562nd
Benjiman: up 201 places, from 888th to 687th
Berry: up 176 places, from 929th to 753rd
Hardin: up 175 places, from 968th to 793rd
Orvil: up 171 places, from 875th to 704th
Ford: up 171 places, from 916th to 745th
Rueben: up 169 places, from 971st to 802nd
Guido: up 151 places, from 678th to 527th
Elisha: up 147 places, from 795th to 648th
Yoshio: up 147 places, from 946th to 799th

New to the top 1,000 in 1921

Girls

Elwanda, 739th (its first time ever)
Terry, 756th (back after dropping out)
Noreen, 801st (back after dropping out)
Aida, 813th (back after dropping out)
Madalyn, 820th (back after dropping out)
Arlie, 829th (back after dropping out)
Elayne, 832nd (its first time ever)
Bernardine, 845th (back after dropping out)
Darline, 863rd (its first time ever)
Mafalda, 875th (back after dropping out)

Boys

Enrico, 660th (back after dropping out)
Lon, 686th (back after dropping out)
Kevin, 720th (its first time ever)
Harden, 735th (its first time ever)
Margarito, 758th (back after dropping out)
Richmond, 798th (back after dropping out)
Delton, 827th (its first time ever)
Reynaldo, 831st (its first time ever)
Foy, 836th (back after dropping out)
Terence, 842nd (back after dropping out)

How spread out were names in 1921?

The ten most popular girls' names went to 23.4% of the girls counted in 1921, and the top ten boys' names to 31.7% of the boys. In 1901, those shares were 19.6% for girls and 33.6% 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.