Popular baby names in California, 1937

The most popular baby names in California in 1937 were Mary for girls (1,712 babies) and Robert for boys (2,885). Social Security records list 83,740 babies born in California in 1937 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in California in 1937

Names given at least 15 times in California that year and at least twice as common as in the US as a whole.

Girls

Armida: 22 babies, 11.3× the national rate
Lupe: 103 babies, 8.3× the national rate
Angie: 45 babies, 6.1× the national rate
Jacklyn: 23 babies, 5.8× the national rate
Esperanza: 24 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Ofelia: 21 babies, 5.6× the national rate
Toni: 44 babies, 5.3× the national rate
Carmen: 135 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Darleen: 21 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Consuelo: 27 babies, 4.4× the national rate

Boys

Angel: 33 babies, 7.9× the national rate
Salvador: 45 babies, 7.8× the national rate
Raul: 62 babies, 5.8× the national rate
Ignacio: 22 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Rudy: 77 babies, 5.5× the national rate
Manuel: 239 babies, 5.2× the national rate
Armando: 37 babies, 5.1× the national rate
Fernando: 31 babies, 5.1× the national rate
Miguel: 28 babies, 4.8× the national rate
Ron: 26 babies, 4.7× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in California, 1937

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1936	US rank
1	Mary	1,712	–	1
2	Barbara	1,601	–	2
3	Patricia	1,252	–	3
4	Carol	1,015	–	6
5	Shirley	733	–	4
6	Nancy	677	↑1	7
7	Betty	661	↑1	5
8	Joan	627	↓2	9
9	Donna	601	↑2	21
10	Beverly	577	↓1	14
11	Margaret	567	↑1	10
12	Marilyn	558	↓2	13
13	Virginia	454	–	16
14	Dorothy	450	↑1	8
15	Diane	437	↑4	76
16	Helen	433	↓2	12
17	Joyce	428	–	11
18	Carolyn	418	↑7	20
19	Sharon	416	↑3	41
20	Gloria	380	↓4	32
21	Janet	376	↓1	18
22	Frances	374	↓1	19
23	Sandra	370	–	26
24	Janice	344	↑6	25
25	Dolores	313	↓7	37
26	Alice	310	↓2	28
27	Linda	310	new	49
28	Darlene	277	↑4	72
29	Carole	269	↑11	56
30	Elizabeth	268	↑6	17
31	Joanne	268	↓3	51
32	Jean	265	↓1	23
33	Ruth	264	↓6	15
34	Ann	257	↓1	30
35	Marlene	255	↓9	40
36	Norma	253	↓1	33
37	Sally	249	↓8	59
38	Judith	247	↑9	34
39	Roberta	233	↑2	66
40	Marie	221	↑4	35
41	Arlene	219	↑1	60
42	Rose	217	↑1	38
43	Evelyn	211	new	36
44	Eleanor	207	↓5	53
45	Irene	204	↓8	62
46	Doris	199	↑2	22
47	Phyllis	197	↓9	27
48	Pat	196	↓2	>100
49	Lois	192	↓15	29
50	Judy	190	new	91

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1936	US rank
1	Robert	2,885	–	1
2	Richard	1,975	–	5
3	John	1,844	–	3
4	James	1,546	–	2
5	William	1,402	–	4
6	David	1,140	↑1	8
7	Donald	1,111	↓1	7
8	Ronald	974	↑1	11
9	Charles	931	↓1	6
10	George	713	–	10
11	Gary	650	↑5	29
12	Edward	609	–	13
13	Frank	608	↓2	18
14	Kenneth	605	–	14
15	Thomas	600	↓2	9
16	Michael	541	↑4	27
17	Jack	498	↓2	23
18	Paul	486	↓1	15
19	Larry	481	↑4	16
20	Jerry	475	↓1	17
21	Raymond	460	↓3	19
22	Gerald	399	↑5	20
23	Joe	395	↓2	25
24	Joseph	377	↓2	12
25	Don	337	↓1	51
26	Fred	329	↑7	35
27	Bob	313	↓1	81
28	Bill	308	↓3	64
29	Arthur	288	↑2	31
30	Jim	287	↑9	82
31	Albert	273	↓2	37
32	Daniel	260	↑3	39
33	Harold	260	↑9	21
34	Henry	256	↓6	30
35	Ralph	253	↓3	34
36	Norman	244	↑4	43
37	Roger	242	↑1	36
38	Manuel	239	↓4	>100
39	Walter	233	↓9	26
40	Carl	228	↓4	28
41	Lawrence	228	↓4	38
42	Peter	216	↓1	52
43	Eugene	212	↑3	33
44	Dennis	198	new	63
45	Roy	197	↑5	40
46	Bruce	193	new	70
47	Alfred	189	↑2	60
48	Ray	187	new	71
49	Gilbert	186	↓5	>100
50	Wayne	186	new	44

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