Popular names of the 1940s
Across the 1940s, the most popular baby names in the US were Mary for girls (640,080 babies) and James for boys (795,775). The names that most defined the decade, rising to a peak then and fading after, include Linda, Richard, Barbara, Patricia, Carol.
Top 25 names of the 1940s
| # | Name | Babies in the 1940s | Alive today (est.) | Median age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary | 640,080 | 1,663,000 | 70 |
| 2 | Linda | 531,660 | 1,054,000 | 73 |
| 3 | Barbara | 425,271 | 797,000 | 74 |
| 4 | Patricia | 411,412 | 1,005,000 | 71 |
| 5 | Carol | 292,333 | 508,000 | 73 |
| 6 | Sandra | 265,538 | 645,000 | 69 |
| 7 | Nancy | 252,061 | 627,000 | 71 |
| 8 | Sharon | 221,237 | 533,000 | 69 |
| 9 | Judith | 218,037 | 284,000 | 76 |
| 10 | Susan | 212,016 | 860,000 | 68 |
| 11 | Betty | 194,623 | 310,000 | 78 |
| 12 | Carolyn | 181,858 | 350,000 | 71 |
| 13 | Margaret | 173,028 | 470,000 | 68 |
| 14 | Shirley | 171,780 | 293,000 | 77 |
| 15 | Judy | 167,719 | 258,000 | 74 |
| 16 | Karen | 167,700 | 791,000 | 65 |
| 17 | Donna | 165,523 | 582,000 | 68 |
| 18 | Kathleen | 152,981 | 500,000 | 68 |
| 19 | Joyce | 151,494 | 270,000 | 74 |
| 20 | Dorothy | 132,257 | 239,000 | 77 |
| 21 | Janet | 130,755 | 355,000 | 70 |
| 22 | Diane | 122,878 | 386,000 | 69 |
| 23 | Janice | 118,893 | 266,000 | 72 |
| 24 | Joan | 117,708 | 214,000 | 76 |
| 25 | Elizabeth | 116,551 | 1,130,000 | 43 |
| # | Name | Babies in the 1940s | Alive today (est.) | Median age |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | James | 795,775 | 2,864,000 | 58 |
| 2 | Robert | 758,126 | 2,523,000 | 61 |
| 3 | John | 711,614 | 2,676,000 | 59 |
| 4 | William | 556,478 | 2,137,000 | 55 |
| 5 | Richard | 477,476 | 1,406,000 | 63 |
| 6 | David | 426,372 | 2,659,000 | 56 |
| 7 | Charles | 361,772 | 1,170,000 | 59 |
| 8 | Thomas | 350,775 | 1,426,000 | 58 |
| 9 | Michael | 336,568 | 3,540,000 | 51 |
| 10 | Ronald | 282,489 | 634,000 | 67 |
| 11 | Larry | 255,908 | 484,000 | 69 |
| 12 | Donald | 247,834 | 628,000 | 67 |
| 13 | Joseph | 230,285 | 1,655,000 | 44 |
| 14 | Gary | 217,772 | 585,000 | 68 |
| 15 | George | 209,013 | 530,000 | 63 |
| 16 | Kenneth | 198,553 | 761,000 | 61 |
| 17 | Paul | 183,364 | 794,000 | 60 |
| 18 | Edward | 174,801 | 575,000 | 61 |
| 19 | Jerry | 167,257 | 350,000 | 66 |
| 20 | Dennis | 162,114 | 397,000 | 68 |
| 21 | Frank | 119,417 | 333,000 | 63 |
| 22 | Daniel | 112,778 | 1,608,000 | 41 |
| 23 | Raymond | 109,076 | 349,000 | 60 |
| 24 | Roger | 107,602 | 250,000 | 67 |
| 25 | Stephen | 106,812 | 635,000 | 56 |
Counts sum the top 100 of each year, so a name popular in only part of the decade can be undercounted. Living estimates use SSA life tables; see methods.
Names that defined the 1940s
Names whose most popular decade was the 1940s, at least four times their usual level, and that have since faded. The "peak factor" compares the decade with the name's typical level in other decades.
| Name | Used for | Babies in the 1940s | Peak factor |
|---|---|---|---|
| Linda | Girls | 531,660 | 88.7× |
| Richard | Boys | 477,476 | 4.1× |
| Barbara | Girls | 425,271 | 22× |
| Patricia | Girls | 411,412 | 25.9× |
| Carol | Girls | 292,333 | 62.9× |
| Ronald | Boys | 282,489 | 24.9× |
| Sandra | Girls | 265,538 | 86.9× |
| Larry | Boys | 255,908 | 36.7× |
| Nancy | Girls | 252,061 | 8.3× |
| Sharon | Girls | 221,237 | 93.4× |
| Judith | Girls | 218,037 | 63.2× |
| Kenneth | Boys | 198,553 | 4× |
| Carolyn | Girls | 181,858 | 17.8× |
| Judy | Girls | 167,719 | 113.2× |
| Jerry | Boys | 167,257 | 11.3× |
| Dennis | Boys | 162,114 | 13.1× |
| Janet | Girls | 130,755 | 17× |
| Janice | Girls | 118,893 | 37.4× |
| Roger | Boys | 107,602 | 10.6× |
| Gloria | Girls | 105,055 | 18.5× |