Most Popular Baby Names of 1932

In 1932, Mary was the most popular name for girls, given to 59,883 babies, and Robert topped the boys' list with 59,268. Mary held on to number one for a 53rd year in a row, and Robert held on to number one for a ninth year in a row.

Social Security counted 1,067,148 girls and 1,044,157 boys born in 1932 under names given to at least five babies, spread across 5,098 different girls' names and 4,284 boys' names.

Top 100 names of 1932

Top girls' names, 1932
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1931
1	Mary	59,883	same
2	Betty	34,420	same
3	Barbara	26,318	up 1
4	Dorothy	24,974	down 1
5	Joan	21,044	same
6	Patricia	17,992	up 2
7	Margaret	16,556	same
8	Helen	16,376	down 2
9	Shirley	14,476	same
10	Doris	12,910	same
11	Ruth	12,257	same
12	Joyce	11,362	up 3
13	Nancy	10,948	up 4
14	Virginia	10,755	down 2
15	Jean	10,670	down 2
16	Marilyn	10,567	up 3
17	Elizabeth	9,999	down 1
18	Dolores	9,630	down 4
19	Frances	9,552	down 1
20	Lois	9,519	same
21	Alice	8,537	same
22	Norma	8,406	same
23	Evelyn	7,958	up 1
24	Anna	7,924	up 1
25	Gloria	7,813	down 2
26	Mildred	7,643	same
27	Martha	7,579	up 1
28	Beverly	7,527	up 3
29	Donna	7,362	up 3
30	Phyllis	7,308	down 1
31	Marie	6,913	down 4
32	Carol	6,570	up 14
33	Rose	6,476	down 3
34	Ann	6,195	up 1
35	Janet	5,786	up 10
36	Louise	5,643	down 3
37	Marjorie	5,608	down 3
38	Ruby	5,469	up 1
39	Catherine	5,449	down 3
40	Peggy	5,445	up 2
41	Annie	5,385	same
42	Geraldine	5,332	down 4
43	Irene	5,200	down 6
44	June	4,845	same
45	Eleanor	4,836	down 5
46	Carolyn	4,587	up 14
47	Florence	4,542	down 4
48	Lillian	4,351	down 1
49	Jane	4,348	up 1
50	Edna	4,279	up 2
51	Thelma	4,272	up 2
52	Wanda	4,261	up 2
53	Rita	4,256	down 5
54	Gladys	4,185	up 1
55	Lorraine	4,162	down 6
56	Delores	4,152	up 2
57	Josephine	4,095	down 6
58	Juanita	4,012	down 1
59	Pauline	3,901	down 3
60	Theresa	3,813	down 1
61	Audrey	3,735	up 3
62	Joanne	3,730	up 6
63	Lucille	3,650	down 1
64	Bonnie	3,621	up 9
65	Wilma	3,611	up 4
66	Ethel	3,608	up 1
67	Sarah	3,597	up 4
68	Elaine	3,575	up 4
69	Edith	3,570	down 4
70	Clara	3,564	down 9
71	Bernice	3,542	down 8
72	Grace	3,536	down 2
73	Marion	3,493	down 7
74	Charlotte	3,363	up 1
75	Hazel	3,340	down 1
76	Emma	3,330	same
77	Patsy	3,254	up 6
78	Marlene	3,219	up 17
79	Joann	3,115	up 11
80	Arlene	3,109	down 3
81	Anne	2,969	down 1
82	Esther	2,959	down 3
83	Kathleen	2,945	up 4
84	Sally	2,917	up 13
85	Jacqueline	2,875	down 7
86	Marian	2,837	down 2
87	Beatrice	2,787	down 2
88	Laura	2,748	up 1
89	Loretta	2,746	up 7
90	Vivian	2,662	down 8
91	Willie	2,662	up 2
92	Julia	2,657	down 1
93	Billie	2,635	down 12
94	Janice	2,628	up 10
95	Katherine	2,588	down 3
96	Sylvia	2,568	up 27
97	Elsie	2,554	down 11
98	Eva	2,522	down 4
99	Constance	2,492	up 19
100	Rosemary	2,483	down 12

Top boys' names, 1932
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1931
1	Robert	59,268	same
2	James	51,930	same
3	John	48,624	same
4	William	42,124	same
5	Richard	31,809	same
6	Charles	31,092	same
7	Donald	29,794	same
8	George	20,439	same
9	Joseph	18,566	same
10	Thomas	16,834	same
11	Edward	15,191	same
12	David	12,139	up 1
13	Paul	12,066	down 1
14	Kenneth	11,742	same
15	Frank	11,497	up 1
16	Ronald	11,143	up 11
17	Jack	10,716	down 2
18	Harold	10,433	same
19	Raymond	10,346	down 2
20	Billy	9,436	down 1
21	Walter	8,667	down 1
22	Eugene	8,046	down 1
23	Henry	7,470	down 1
24	Gerald	7,347	up 2
25	Arthur	6,916	down 2
26	Albert	6,863	down 2
27	Ralph	6,727	down 2
28	Carl	6,714	same
29	Joe	6,690	same
30	Bobby	6,597	up 2
31	Willie	6,547	same
32	Harry	5,706	down 2
33	Fred	5,525	same
34	Jerry	5,303	up 9
35	Lawrence	5,295	up 3
36	Howard	5,292	down 2
37	Norman	5,268	down 1
38	Roy	5,238	down 3
39	Louis	5,134	down 2
40	Clarence	4,895	down 1
41	Earl	4,822	down 1
42	Daniel	4,449	up 2
43	Francis	4,388	down 1
44	Herbert	4,368	down 3
45	Anthony	4,223	up 1
46	Marvin	4,187	down 1
47	Ernest	4,166	same
48	Leonard	4,101	same
49	Alfred	3,899	up 1
50	Roger	3,788	up 3
51	Melvin	3,776	same
52	Stanley	3,759	down 3
53	Leroy	3,677	down 1
54	Michael	3,607	up 1
55	Don	3,453	up 4
56	Samuel	3,411	same
57	Wayne	3,388	up 1
58	Bill	3,362	down 1
59	Ray	3,263	up 1
60	Bernard	3,252	down 6
61	Dale	3,140	up 1
62	Peter	3,130	down 1
63	Russell	3,021	same
64	Gene	2,952	same
65	Larry	2,826	up 23
66	Franklin	2,754	up 82
67	Theodore	2,674	up 3
68	Floyd	2,667	down 2
69	Andrew	2,645	down 4
70	Philip	2,625	up 1
71	Lloyd	2,590	down 3
72	Edwin	2,568	down 5
73	Frederick	2,501	same
74	Leo	2,500	down 5
75	Jimmie	2,475	up 6
76	Jimmy	2,461	up 13
77	Glenn	2,435	down 5
78	Vernon	2,428	down 4
79	Bob	2,424	down 1
80	Allen	2,419	down 1
81	Gordon	2,410	down 5
82	Clyde	2,319	down 5
83	Leon	2,295	up 1
84	Clifford	2,286	down 9
85	Douglas	2,284	same
86	Lee	2,284	up 4
87	Alvin	2,274	down 7
88	Martin	2,255	up 3
89	Herman	2,191	down 6
90	Charlie	2,127	up 4
91	Eddie	2,112	up 4
92	Lewis	2,112	down 5
93	Vincent	2,066	down 7
94	Elmer	2,058	down 12
95	Harvey	2,030	down 2
96	Johnny	2,011	up 9
97	Gilbert	1,974	down 5
98	Bruce	1,935	up 3
99	Jesse	1,863	down 2
100	Arnold	1,820	down 2

Biggest climbers in 1932

The names that gained the most ground within the top 1,000 compared with 1931.

Girls

Marylyn: up 253 places, from 940th to 687th
Jeannie: up 211 places, from 849th to 638th
Adrienne: up 208 places, from 623rd to 415th
Sonya: up 200 places, from 805th to 605th
Cathleen: up 181 places, from 997th to 816th
Felicia: up 177 places, from 903rd to 726th
Sondra: up 173 places, from 548th to 375th
Karen: up 169 places, from 536th to 367th
Dean: up 168 places, from 931st to 763rd
Sonja: up 160 places, from 983rd to 823rd

Boys

Rosevelt: up 265 places, from 813th to 548th
Melvyn: up 255 places, from 874th to 619th
Terence: up 231 places, from 958th to 727th
Jon: up 212 places, from 653rd to 441st
Maxie: up 199 places, from 798th to 599th
Omar: up 193 places, from 970th to 777th
Taylor: up 171 places, from 867th to 696th
Loran: up 169 places, from 969th to 800th
Franklyn: up 167 places, from 864th to 697th
Dickie: up 167 places, from 914th to 747th

New to the top 1,000 in 1932

Girls

Dorine, 766th (back after dropping out)
Sydney, 807th (back after dropping out)
Letitia, 811th (back after dropping out)
Rosia, 844th (back after dropping out)
Vita, 845th (back after dropping out)
Maud, 866th (back after dropping out)
Carleen, 880th (its first time ever)
Herminia, 892nd (back after dropping out)
Lennie, 895th (back after dropping out)
Melissa, 896th (back after dropping out)

Boys

Garner, 675th (back after dropping out)
Delano, 678th (its first time ever)
Dwaine, 722nd (back after dropping out)
Lindsey, 733rd (back after dropping out)
Logan, 790th (back after dropping out)
Alois, 793rd (back after dropping out)
Issac, 795th (back after dropping out)
Wardell, 801st (back after dropping out)
Virgle, 811th (back after dropping out)
Lucious, 813th (back after dropping out)

How spread out were names in 1932?

The ten most popular girls' names went to 23% of the girls counted in 1932, and the top ten boys' names to 33.6% of the boys. In 1912, those shares were 22.2% for girls and 30.6% 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.