Popular baby names of 1881

In 1881, the most popular baby names in the United States were Mary for girls (6,919 babies) and John for boys (8,768). Social Security records show 192,688 babies with a name given to at least five children of the same sex that year, sharing 938 girls' names and 996 boys' names.

1881 at a glance

The top 10 girls' names went to 24.2% of girls recorded.
The top 10 boys' names went to 43.8% of boys recorded.
New in the girls' top 100: Willie, Kathryn.
New in the boys' top 100: Garfield, Emil, Dave, Leroy, Anthony.

Top 100 girls' and boys' names, 1881

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1880
1	Mary	6,919	–
2	Anna	2,698	–
3	Emma	2,034	–
4	Elizabeth	1,852	–
5	Margaret	1,658	↑1
6	Minnie	1,653	↓1
7	Ida	1,439	–
8	Annie	1,326	↑3
9	Bertha	1,324	–
10	Alice	1,308	↓2
11	Clara	1,242	↑1
12	Sarah	1,226	↓2
13	Ella	1,148	–
14	Nellie	1,096	↑4
15	Grace	1,089	↑4
16	Florence	1,046	↓2
17	Martha	1,044	↓1
18	Cora	969	↓3
19	Laura	962	↓2
20	Carrie	958	–
21	Maude	923	–
22	Bessie	903	↑1
23	Mabel	893	↓1
24	Gertrude	791	↑1
25	Ethel	788	↑13
26	Jennie	784	↓2
27	Edith	778	↑1
28	Hattie	775	↓1
29	Mattie	754	–
30	Julia	737	↓4
31	Rose	734	↓1
32	Lillian	723	–
33	Lillie	678	↑1
34	Eva	661	↑7
35	Jessie	661	↑1
36	Lula	655	↑3
37	Myrtle	643	↑3
38	Pearl	641	↑9
39	Edna	637	↑6
40	Catherine	635	↓9
41	Ada	628	↓8
42	Louise	617	↓5
43	Helen	612	↓8
44	Lucy	611	–
45	Frances	586	↓3
46	Dora	585	↑5
47	Fannie	565	↑2
48	Josephine	563	↑2
49	Daisy	562	↓1
50	Lena	555	↓7
51	Maggie	532	↓5
52	Katherine	504	↑1
53	Rosa	500	↓1
54	Marie	499	↑1
55	Nora	498	↑1
56	Effie	463	↑7
57	Blanche	456	↑2
58	May	451	↓1
59	Nancy	429	↑3
60	Della	428	↑6
61	Agnes	424	↓7
62	Nettie	419	↑3
63	Sallie	416	↑1
64	Stella	416	↓4
65	Ellen	413	↓4
66	Mamie	412	↓8
67	Lizzie	396	–
68	Susie	367	↑1
69	Sadie	366	↑5
70	Elsie	344	↑8
71	Maud	328	↓1
72	Flora	317	↓4
73	Caroline	316	↑2
74	Etta	316	↓2
75	Mae	314	↓4
76	Lulu	313	↑10
77	Lydia	299	–
78	Alma	293	↑4
79	Susan	292	↑1
80	Lottie	289	↑8
81	Addie	287	↑2
82	Mollie	281	↓1
83	Katie	279	↓7
84	Ruth	275	↑9
85	Harriet	270	↓12
86	Kate	267	↓7
87	Amanda	263	↑2
88	Nannie	258	↓1
89	Georgia	256	↓5
90	Emily	244	↑10
91	Eliza	238	↓6
92	Viola	237	↑2
93	Amelia	235	↑3
94	Willie	229	new
95	Charlotte	227	↓4
96	Rebecca	226	↓4
97	Belle	219	↓7
98	Kathryn	218	new
99	Jane	216	↓1
100	Olive	211	↓5

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1880
1	John	8,768	–
2	William	8,524	–
3	James	5,441	–
4	George	4,664	↑1
5	Charles	4,636	↓1
6	Frank	2,834	–
7	Joseph	2,456	–
8	Henry	2,339	↑1
9	Thomas	2,282	↓1
10	Edward	2,177	↑1
11	Robert	2,140	↓1
12	Harry	2,002	–
13	Walter	1,670	–
14	Arthur	1,575	–
15	Fred	1,418	–
16	Albert	1,319	–
17	Samuel	919	–
18	David	750	–
19	Louis	746	–
20	Charlie	668	↑1
21	Clarence	668	↑1
22	Richard	641	↑1
23	Joe	639	↓3
24	Andrew	588	–
25	Ernest	571	↑1
26	Will	550	↑1
27	Jesse	536	↑1
28	Oscar	530	↑1
29	Daniel	527	↓4
30	Willie	498	↑4
31	Benjamin	481	↑1
32	Sam	481	↑4
33	Alfred	466	↑2
34	Roy	440	↑3
35	Lewis	439	↓5
36	Frederick	433	↓3
37	Peter	428	↓6
38	Elmer	388	↑3
39	Jacob	381	–
40	Herbert	369	↓2
41	Carl	359	↑1
42	Howard	359	↑2
43	Tom	349	↓3
44	Lee	342	↓1
45	Ralph	329	↑9
46	Martin	327	↓1
47	Jim	323	↑2
48	Earl	314	↑4
49	Eugene	314	↑4
50	Bert	312	↓3
51	Edgar	312	↑10
52	Herman	304	↓4
53	Claude	302	↑3
54	Michael	298	↓8
55	Paul	291	↑5
56	Ben	289	↑2
57	Ira	286	↑9
58	Harvey	282	↓7
59	Chester	274	↑26
60	Edwin	274	↓3
61	Ed	272	↓6
62	Charley	266	↓3
63	Francis	259	↓13
64	Isaac	258	↓2
65	Luther	249	↓1
66	Lawrence	244	↓1
67	Oliver	238	↑2
68	Clyde	232	↑4
69	Otto	221	↓6
70	Hugh	219	↑1
71	Alexander	209	↑2
72	Leonard	206	↑6
73	Jack	197	↑4
74	Raymond	195	↑13
75	Patrick	188	↓8
76	Guy	186	↓8
77	Homer	181	↓1
78	Floyd	178	↓3
79	Theodore	178	↓9
80	Allen	172	↑2
81	August	172	↓7
82	Marion	162	↓2
83	Philip	156	↓2
84	Warren	156	↑5
85	Horace	152	↓6
86	Dan	148	↑12
87	Ray	148	↑8
88	Garfield	147	new
89	Stephen	147	↓5
90	Emil	145	new
91	Jessie	143	↓1
92	Milton	143	↓1
93	Willis	142	↓7
94	Calvin	138	↑6
95	Dave	135	new
96	Bernard	130	↑1
97	Julius	129	↓3
98	Leroy	129	new
99	Sidney	129	↓3
100	Anthony	128	new

Every name given in 1881

All 1,934 names Social Security recorded for 1881, with their rank and count. Type to filter.

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