Popular baby names of 1946

In 1946, the most popular baby names in the United States were Mary for girls (67,471 babies) and James for boys (87,438). Social Security records show 3,195,328 babies with a name given to at least five children of the same sex that year, sharing 5,686 girls' names and 4,018 boys' names.

1946 at a glance

The top 10 girls' names went to 24.5% of girls recorded.
The top 10 boys' names went to 34.9% of boys recorded.
New in the girls' top 100: Sherry, Kathy, Lynn, Maureen, Marsha, Constance.
New in the boys' top 100: Rodney, Keith.

Top 100 girls' and boys' names, 1946

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1945
1	Mary	67,471	–
2	Linda	52,710	–
3	Patricia	46,297	↑1
4	Barbara	45,126	↓1
5	Carol	34,284	–
6	Sandra	31,692	–
7	Nancy	28,345	–
8	Susan	28,267	↑2
9	Sharon	27,824	↓1
10	Judith	22,310	↓1
11	Judy	20,477	↑2
12	Carolyn	19,902	–
13	Donna	19,770	↑4
14	Betty	19,711	↓3
15	Karen	19,647	↑1
16	Kathleen	18,760	↑3
17	Margaret	18,136	↓2
18	Shirley	17,870	↓4
19	Diane	15,835	↑3
20	Joyce	15,209	↓2
21	Janet	14,142	↓1
22	Janice	14,039	↑2
23	Dorothy	12,797	↓2
24	Brenda	12,690	↑5
25	Elizabeth	11,753	↑1
26	Gloria	11,686	↓3
27	Cheryl	11,526	↑5
28	Joan	11,218	↓3
29	Marilyn	10,711	↓2
30	Beverly	10,430	↑7
31	Virginia	10,015	↓3
32	Martha	9,759	↓2
33	Bonnie	9,510	↑2
34	Pamela	9,367	↑8
35	Jane	8,971	↑1
36	Helen	8,852	↓5
37	Jean	8,554	↑1
38	Ruth	8,474	↓5
39	Frances	8,450	↓5
40	Ann	8,077	↓1
41	Phyllis	8,048	↓1
42	Diana	7,544	↑1
43	Peggy	7,400	↑2
44	Alice	7,363	↓3
45	Connie	7,215	↑2
46	Cynthia	6,895	↑44
47	Elaine	6,803	↓3
48	Catherine	6,367	↑2
49	Gail	6,227	↑3
50	Christine	6,202	↑12
51	Doris	5,987	↓5
52	Suzanne	5,948	↑16
53	Jo	5,828	↑7
54	Marie	5,758	↓5
55	Lois	5,700	↓7
56	Rita	5,533	↑3
57	Joanne	5,506	↓4
58	Ellen	5,237	↑3
59	Wanda	5,235	↓1
60	Rose	5,183	↓6
61	Sue	5,144	↑5
62	Jacqueline	5,083	↑1
63	Kathryn	4,999	↑2
64	Charlotte	4,970	↓9
65	Evelyn	4,890	↓8
66	Geraldine	4,849	↓10
67	Sally	4,842	↓3
68	Rebecca	4,840	↑17
69	Paula	4,724	↓2
70	Sheila	4,706	↑19
71	Darlene	4,662	–
72	Carole	4,621	↓21
73	Sherry	4,518	new
74	Rosemary	4,486	↑5
75	Laura	4,478	↑2
76	Dianne	4,278	↓4
77	Norma	4,266	↓3
78	Katherine	4,197	↑4
79	Kathy	4,179	new
80	Eileen	4,168	↓10
81	Anne	4,115	–
82	Sylvia	4,093	↑1
83	Jeanne	4,045	↑15
84	Anita	4,027	↑16
85	Patsy	4,017	↓1
86	Roberta	4,016	↓11
87	Anna	3,999	↓14
88	Maria	3,960	↓2
89	Marcia	3,946	↓1
90	Joann	3,945	↓10
91	Louise	3,925	↓13
92	Sarah	3,910	↓16
93	Lorraine	3,886	↓6
94	Lynn	3,884	new
95	Maureen	3,684	new
96	Theresa	3,684	–
97	Annie	3,651	↓28
98	Marsha	3,611	new
99	Glenda	3,568	↓7
100	Constance	3,419	new

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1945
1	James	87,438	–
2	Robert	84,136	–
3	John	79,267	–
4	William	60,034	–
5	Richard	58,870	–
6	David	46,444	–
7	Michael	41,194	↑2
8	Thomas	38,877	–
9	Charles	38,215	↓2
10	Ronald	31,858	–
11	Larry	28,447	–
12	Gary	26,931	↑1
13	Donald	26,273	↓1
14	Joseph	24,284	–
15	Kenneth	22,042	↑1
16	George	21,575	↓1
17	Dennis	21,447	↑2
18	Paul	21,063	↓1
19	Edward	18,585	↓1
20	Jerry	17,567	–
21	Daniel	12,867	↑3
22	Frank	12,667	↓1
23	Roger	12,411	↓1
24	Stephen	11,832	↑2
25	Raymond	11,289	↓2
26	Terry	10,678	↑7
27	Gerald	10,033	↓2
28	Steven	8,878	↑15
29	Wayne	8,807	↑6
30	Walter	8,668	↓3
31	Lawrence	8,517	↓1
32	Bruce	8,459	↑16
33	Harold	8,373	↓5
34	Douglas	8,336	↓5
35	Jack	7,801	↓3
36	Arthur	7,537	↓2
37	Joe	7,536	↓1
38	Peter	7,483	–
39	Carl	7,380	–
40	Willie	7,339	↓9
41	Henry	7,317	↓4
42	Jimmy	7,128	↓1
43	Roy	6,925	↓3
44	Anthony	6,771	↑2
45	Billy	6,716	↓3
46	Danny	6,650	↑10
47	Johnny	6,611	↓2
48	Ralph	6,587	↓4
49	Alan	6,490	↑3
50	Harry	6,027	↓3
51	Fred	6,012	–
52	Albert	6,007	↓3
53	Bobby	5,771	–
54	Ronnie	5,727	↑13
55	Howard	5,694	↓1
56	Gregory	5,672	↑40
57	Eugene	5,670	↓7
58	Mark	5,331	↑14
59	Patrick	5,305	↑4
60	Timothy	5,152	↑10
61	Philip	5,093	↓3
62	Dale	5,024	↓1
63	Louis	4,918	↓8
64	Mike	4,854	↑5
65	Stanley	4,767	↓6
66	Russell	4,741	↓2
67	Leonard	4,704	↓10
68	Barry	4,624	↑16
69	Steve	4,570	↑10
70	Samuel	4,523	↓8
71	Ernest	4,395	↓11
72	Bill	4,354	↓6
73	Jim	4,336	↓5
74	Allen	4,294	–
75	Frederick	4,231	↑2
76	Norman	4,161	↓11
77	Tommy	4,144	↓2
78	Jeffrey	4,125	↑13
79	Don	4,110	↓6
80	Francis	4,006	↓4
81	Glenn	3,892	↑12
82	Earl	3,830	↓11
83	Phillip	3,775	↑2
84	Andrew	3,758	↑2
85	Eddie	3,746	↓4
86	Melvin	3,742	↓8
87	Tom	3,624	↑2
88	Marvin	3,600	↓8
89	Clarence	3,567	↓7
90	Leroy	3,472	↓7
91	Lee	3,346	↓4
92	Martin	3,333	↓2
93	Rodney	3,304	new
94	Alfred	3,238	↓6
95	Ray	3,169	↓3
96	Keith	2,860	new
97	Herbert	2,818	↓3
98	Gene	2,759	↑2
99	Curtis	2,723	↓2
100	Clifford	2,616	↓1

Every name given in 1946

All 9,704 names Social Security recorded for 1946, with their rank and count. Type to filter.

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