Most Popular Baby Names of 1939

In 1939, Mary was the most popular name for girls, given to 54,900 babies, and Robert topped the boys' list with 59,666. Mary held on to number one for a 60th year in a row, and Robert held on to number one for a 16th year in a row.

Social Security counted 1,096,612 girls and 1,106,852 boys born in 1939 under names given to at least five babies, spread across 4,950 different girls' names and 3,968 boys' names.

Top 100 names of 1939

Top girls' names, 1939
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938
1	Mary	54,900	same
2	Barbara	37,257	same
3	Patricia	29,701	same
4	Betty	23,639	same
5	Shirley	20,447	same
6	Carol	20,166	same
7	Nancy	19,723	same
8	Judith	16,625	up 4
9	Dorothy	15,169	down 1
10	Margaret	14,949	down 1
11	Joan	14,143	down 1
12	Joyce	13,394	down 1
13	Sandra	11,970	up 1
14	Carolyn	11,290	up 1
15	Linda	10,713	up 16
16	Helen	10,420	down 3
17	Janet	10,120	down 1
18	Elizabeth	9,709	down 1
19	Marilyn	9,538	same
20	Donna	9,371	same
21	Virginia	9,227	up 1
22	Ruth	9,062	down 1
23	Sharon	9,014	up 7
24	Janice	8,778	same
25	Beverly	8,706	down 7
26	Frances	8,577	down 3
27	Martha	8,493	down 1
28	Judy	8,081	up 13
29	Doris	7,687	down 4
30	Phyllis	7,590	down 2
31	Alice	7,365	down 2
32	Jean	7,292	down 5
33	Ann	6,551	down 1
34	Peggy	6,050	up 1
35	Lois	6,034	down 2
36	Gloria	5,939	same
37	Marie	5,890	same
38	Norma	5,827	down 4
39	Karen	5,541	up 11
40	Evelyn	5,332	down 2
41	Geraldine	5,160	up 4
42	Rose	5,040	down 3
43	Anna	4,929	down 3
44	Susan	4,887	up 27
45	Elaine	4,785	down 3
46	Jane	4,771	down 2
47	Carole	4,679	down 1
48	Kathleen	4,656	up 10
49	Catherine	4,577	down 1
50	Wanda	4,557	down 1
51	Diane	4,340	up 13
52	Sally	4,244	up 2
53	Joanne	4,225	up 4
54	Annie	4,155	down 7
55	Mildred	4,137	down 3
56	Patsy	4,111	down 1
57	Joann	3,994	up 11
58	Dolores	3,980	down 15
59	Louise	3,956	same
60	Marjorie	3,907	down 7
61	Bonnie	3,887	up 4
62	Sylvia	3,870	down 6
63	Eleanor	3,810	down 3
64	Marlene	3,773	down 13
65	Loretta	3,769	down 3
66	Charlotte	3,739	up 4
67	Ruby	3,712	down 6
68	Sarah	3,671	down 1
69	Arlene	3,578	down 6
70	Jo	3,524	up 8
71	Roberta	3,409	up 2
72	Jacqueline	3,388	down 3
73	Gail	3,355	up 4
74	Irene	3,331	down 2
75	Darlene	3,287	up 1
76	Kay	3,260	up 5
77	Juanita	3,212	up 3
78	Rita	3,188	down 4
79	Delores	3,018	down 4
80	Ellen	3,005	up 9
81	Edna	2,904	up 1
82	Jeanette	2,893	up 9
83	June	2,867	down 4
84	Josephine	2,837	down 1
85	Anne	2,769	down 1
86	Brenda	2,756	up 158
87	Wilma	2,701	down 2
88	Thelma	2,696	down 2
89	Emma	2,685	up 7
90	Yvonne	2,648	up 11
91	Julia	2,635	up 16
92	Sue	2,623	up 12
93	Rosemary	2,612	up 2
94	Theresa	2,611	down 2
95	Lorraine	2,593	down 2
96	Florence	2,592	down 6
97	Anita	2,588	up 2
98	Audrey	2,569	down 11
99	Lillian	2,551	down 11
100	Ethel	2,496	down 6

Top boys' names, 1939
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938
1	Robert	59,666	same
2	James	59,636	same
3	John	51,025	same
4	William	42,071	same
5	Richard	35,386	same
6	Charles	30,789	same
7	David	25,360	up 1
8	Donald	24,056	down 1
9	Thomas	22,129	same
10	Ronald	19,837	same
11	George	17,886	same
12	Joseph	17,722	same
13	Kenneth	14,715	up 1
14	Larry	14,532	up 2
15	Edward	14,427	down 2
16	Jerry	13,729	up 1
17	Paul	13,337	down 2
18	Michael	10,828	up 3
19	Gerald	10,057	same
20	Frank	9,991	down 2
21	Gary	9,684	up 1
22	Raymond	9,252	down 2
23	Harold	8,299	same
24	Billy	7,474	same
25	Walter	7,322	up 1
26	Jack	7,306	down 1
27	Joe	7,189	up 1
28	Roger	7,155	up 3
29	Bobby	7,057	down 2
30	Carl	6,593	down 1
31	Henry	6,561	down 1
32	Arthur	6,380	same
33	Willie	6,308	up 1
34	Dennis	6,212	up 15
35	Ralph	5,959	same
36	Lawrence	5,882	same
37	Eugene	5,869	down 4
38	Daniel	5,797	up 1
39	Wayne	5,653	up 1
40	Fred	5,538	down 2
41	Albert	5,477	down 4
42	Roy	5,156	down 1
43	Jimmy	4,753	up 2
44	Norman	4,742	down 1
45	Harry	4,661	down 1
46	Peter	4,639	up 2
47	Howard	4,613	down 5
48	Anthony	4,610	down 2
49	Louis	4,224	down 2
50	Earl	3,896	same
51	Melvin	3,853	up 3
52	Marvin	3,758	up 1
53	Francis	3,721	down 2
54	Leonard	3,711	up 3
55	Ernest	3,688	same
56	Don	3,589	down 4
57	Stanley	3,570	up 2
58	Douglas	3,564	up 2
59	Dale	3,531	down 3
60	Clarence	3,482	down 2
61	Leroy	3,388	same
62	Johnny	3,371	up 1
63	Samuel	3,254	down 1
64	Bruce	3,233	up 2
65	Stephen	3,176	up 9
66	Philip	3,174	down 2
67	Bill	3,161	same
68	Herbert	3,097	same
69	Gene	3,014	down 4
70	Alfred	2,990	down 1
71	Frederick	2,972	same
72	Allen	2,928	up 1
73	Russell	2,833	down 3
74	Ray	2,709	down 2
75	Jim	2,636	up 6
76	Bernard	2,624	down 1
77	Tommy	2,622	same
78	Lee	2,589	up 2
79	Patrick	2,530	up 9
80	Jimmie	2,524	down 4
81	Eddie	2,511	down 2
82	Gordon	2,508	down 4
83	Terry	2,444	up 3
84	Andrew	2,440	down 2
85	Alan	2,330	up 6
86	Leon	2,327	down 1
87	Glenn	2,303	down 4
88	Clifford	2,290	up 1
89	Bob	2,244	up 5
90	Theodore	2,196	down 6
91	Martin	2,192	down 4
92	Phillip	2,175	up 3
93	Jerome	2,153	same
94	Floyd	2,094	up 2
95	Lloyd	2,087	down 3
96	Edwin	2,063	down 6
97	Tom	2,028	up 9
98	Curtis	2,012	up 3
99	Jesse	2,010	up 8
100	Vernon	1,994	up 3

Biggest climbers in 1939

The names that gained the most ground within the top 1,000 compared with 1938.

Girls

Judi: up 248 places, from 998th to 750th
Ronnie: up 189 places, from 948th to 759th
Georgina: up 187 places, from 936th to 749th
David: up 186 places, from 891st to 705th
Jeraldine: up 182 places, from 711th to 529th
Melinda: up 178 places, from 664th to 486th
Michael: up 177 places, from 941st to 764th
Katy: up 167 places, from 946th to 779th
Cathy: up 166 places, from 725th to 559th
Penelope: up 160 places, from 486th to 326th

Boys

Judith: up 296 places, from 984th to 688th
Arlyn: up 239 places, from 977th to 738th
Dayton: up 213 places, from 914th to 701st
Rogelio: up 191 places, from 960th to 769th
Jeffrey: up 181 places, from 465th to 284th
Raphael: up 170 places, from 893rd to 723rd
Dell: up 170 places, from 940th to 770th
Robbie: up 169 places, from 937th to 768th
Jacky: up 167 places, from 752nd to 585th
Jefferson: up 165 places, from 789th to 624th

New to the top 1,000 in 1939

Girls

Lana, 732nd (back after dropping out)
Marleen, 747th (back after dropping out)
Jessica, 778th (back after dropping out)
Jocelyn, 805th (back after dropping out)
Karel, 842nd (its first time ever)
Karon, 843rd (its first time ever)
Glynda, 870th (its first time ever)
Tamara, 876th (its first time ever)
Carlotta, 882nd (back after dropping out)
Suzann, 889th (its first time ever)

Boys

Ronal, 780th (its first time ever)
Prentice, 792nd (back after dropping out)
Willam, 835th (back after dropping out)
Jeffery, 838th (its first time ever)
Kim, 850th (back after dropping out)
Lonzo, 852nd (back after dropping out)
Randell, 856th (its first time ever)
Conley, 859th (back after dropping out)
Wardell, 866th (back after dropping out)
Madison, 878th (back after dropping out)

How spread out were names in 1939?

The ten most popular girls' names went to 23% of the girls counted in 1939, and the top ten boys' names to 33.4% of the boys. In 1919, those shares were 23% for girls and 30.9% 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.