Popular baby names in Illinois, 1940

The most popular baby names in Illinois in 1940 were Mary for girls (2,770 babies) and Robert for boys (3,840). Robert ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 115,156 babies born in Illinois in 1940 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Illinois in 1940

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

Girls

Adrienne: 49 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Bernadine: 50 babies, 3.1× the national rate
Marilynn: 48 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Denise: 42 babies, 2.6× the national rate
Renee: 36 babies, 2.4× the national rate
Margo: 35 babies, 2.3× the national rate
Bonita: 55 babies, 2.2× the national rate
Judie: 31 babies, 2.2× the national rate
Penelope: 46 babies, 2.1× the national rate
Diane: 519 babies, 2× the national rate

Boys

Norbert: 36 babies, 2.5× the national rate
Nick: 45 babies, 2.2× the national rate
Micheal: 34 babies, 2.2× the national rate
Gregory: 80 babies, 2.1× the national rate
Jerome: 222 babies, 2× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Illinois, 1940

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1939	US rank
1	Mary	2,770	–	1
2	Judith	2,199	↑2	4
3	Patricia	2,109	–	3
4	Barbara	2,033	↓2	2
5	Carol	1,677	–	6
6	Nancy	1,278	–	7
7	Sandra	1,216	–	10
8	Sharon	1,071	↑1	17
9	Linda	1,009	↑9	8
10	Judy	997	↑7	16
11	Joyce	879	↓1	13
12	Joan	787	↑1	14
13	Shirley	771	↓5	9
14	Donna	756	↓2	23
15	Janet	738	–	19
16	Betty	717	↓5	5
17	Marilyn	715	↓3	25
18	Margaret	704	↓2	11
19	Karen	702	↑6	34
20	Carolyn	685	↑1	15
21	Dorothy	662	↓2	12
22	Beverly	657	↓2	27
23	Janice	554	↑3	22
24	Diane	519	–	45
25	Ruth	519	↓2	24
26	Phyllis	484	↓4	33
27	Susan	454	↑6	36
28	Bonnie	449	new	39
29	Jean	431	–	29
30	Helen	424	↓2	18
31	Virginia	421	↓4	21
32	Carole	378	↓2	49
33	Kathleen	367	↑7	40
34	Gloria	365	↑13	30
35	Elizabeth	361	–	20
36	Alice	352	–	32
37	Frances	343	–	28
38	Lois	339	↓7	38
39	Doris	325	↓5	31
40	Joanne	318	↓1	54
41	Ann	309	↑4	35
42	Geraldine	287	↓4	46
43	Elaine	282	↓1	50
44	Rose	278	↑5	44
45	Roberta	265	↑5	71
46	Joann	261	new	63
47	Martha	259	new	26
48	Arlene	257	↓16	75
49	Norma	251	↓5	43
50	Jacqueline	248	↓4	76

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1939	US rank
1	Robert	3,840	–	2
2	James	3,264	–	1
3	John	3,250	–	3
4	Richard	2,512	–	5
5	William	2,497	–	4
6	Ronald	1,748	–	10
7	Charles	1,576	↑1	6
8	Thomas	1,567	↑2	8
9	Donald	1,471	↓2	9
10	David	1,470	↓1	7
11	Larry	1,244	–	13
12	Kenneth	1,036	–	15
13	Michael	962	↑4	18
14	Joseph	960	↓1	12
15	George	917	–	11
16	Edward	878	↓2	16
17	Paul	803	↑2	17
18	Jerry	791	↓2	14
19	Gerald	725	↓1	21
20	Gary	692	↑2	19
21	Dennis	656	–	24
22	Frank	644	↓2	20
23	Raymond	598	–	22
24	Roger	520	↑1	26
25	Jack	444	↓1	29
26	Walter	419	↑2	25
27	Harold	416	–	23
28	Lawrence	414	↑1	36
29	Daniel	401	↓3	34
30	Carl	394	–	32
31	Wayne	386	–	39
32	Fred	380	↑1	40
33	Arthur	314	↓1	33
34	Ralph	301	–	37
35	Bruce	286	↑10	55
36	Leonard	273	↑4	54
37	Eugene	272	↓1	38
38	Anthony	270	↓1	46
39	Dale	266	↑2	57
40	Norman	265	↓5	48
41	Peter	264	↓3	43
42	Henry	256	↓3	31
43	Howard	256	↑1	45
44	Terry	249	↑3	73
45	Philip	246	↑1	60
46	Albert	244	↓4	41
47	Roy	227	new	42
48	Jerome	222	new	95
49	Bill	220	–	67
50	Stanley	216	new	59

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