Popular baby names in Indiana, 1939

The most popular baby names in Indiana in 1939 were Mary for girls (1,278 babies) and James for boys (1,643). James ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 51,873 babies born in Indiana in 1939 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Indiana in 1939

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

Girls

Madonna: 20 babies, 6.6× the national rate
Sherrill: 17 babies, 4.8× the national rate
Ladonna: 15 babies, 4.1× the national rate
Patty: 86 babies, 3.5× the national rate
Sondra: 69 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Sharon: 630 babies, 3× the national rate
Sue: 180 babies, 3× the national rate
Dixie: 79 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Saundra: 27 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Becky: 17 babies, 2.8× the national rate

Boys

Max: 111 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Rex: 54 babies, 4× the national rate
Larry: 1,069 babies, 3.1× the national rate
Monte: 16 babies, 3× the national rate
Danny: 87 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Jan: 21 babies, 2.9× the national rate
Merrill: 16 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Phillip: 136 babies, 2.6× the national rate
Jon: 89 babies, 2.6× the national rate
Keith: 89 babies, 2.5× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Indiana, 1939

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Mary	1,278	–	1
2	Barbara	872	–	2
3	Judith	859	↑6	8
4	Patricia	814	↓1	3
5	Nancy	748	↓1	7
6	Sharon	630	↑4	23
7	Carolyn	574	↓1	14
8	Carol	567	–	6
9	Shirley	565	↓4	5
10	Linda	560	↑4	15
11	Janet	534	–	17
12	Sandra	518	–	13
13	Betty	516	↓6	4
14	Donna	419	↑1	20
15	Marilyn	409	↓2	19
16	Judy	403	↑9	28
17	Joyce	394	↑1	12
18	Beverly	384	↓1	25
19	Phyllis	378	↓3	30
20	Janice	356	↓1	24
21	Ruth	322	↓1	22
22	Margaret	292	↓1	10
23	Martha	282	↓1	27
24	Joan	245	–	11
25	Karen	230	↑11	39
26	Dorothy	228	–	9
27	Helen	196	–	16
28	Virginia	194	–	21
29	Norma	189	↓6	38
30	Sue	180	–	92
31	Wanda	171	–	50
32	Alice	170	–	31
33	Lois	165	↑1	35
34	Elizabeth	163	↓1	18
35	Jane	158	–	46
36	Bonnie	156	↑3	61
37	Peggy	148	↑1	34
38	Doris	141	↓9	29
39	Marjorie	139	↑1	60
40	Sally	136	↑1	52
41	Carole	135	new	47
42	Marcia	135	new	>100
43	Kay	132	–	76
44	Anna	129	↑2	43
45	Charlotte	124	new	66
46	Frances	123	↓2	26
47	Susan	122	new	44
48	Rita	121	↑2	78
49	Rose	120	new	42
50	Jean	116	new	32

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	James	1,643	↑1	2
2	Robert	1,568	↓1	1
3	John	1,246	–	3
4	Larry	1,069	↑4	14
5	William	1,064	↓1	4
6	Richard	981	↓1	5
7	David	979	↑2	7
8	Charles	824	↓1	6
9	Donald	809	↓3	8
10	Jerry	770	↑1	16
11	Ronald	721	↓1	10
12	Thomas	584	–	9
13	Paul	436	↑1	17
14	Kenneth	432	↓1	13
15	George	377	–	11
16	Jack	325	–	26
17	Michael	314	↑2	18
18	Joseph	313	↓1	12
19	Gerald	259	↓1	19
20	Gary	252	↑3	21
21	Edward	249	–	15
22	Harold	231	↓2	23
23	Carl	220	↓1	30
24	Dennis	189	↑22	34
25	Raymond	187	↓1	22
26	Roger	183	↑14	28
27	Ralph	180	↓2	35
28	Don	169	↓1	56
29	Frank	157	↑1	20
30	Fred	155	↑1	40
31	Norman	151	↓3	44
32	Dale	150	–	59
33	Daniel	147	–	38
34	Joe	147	↑2	27
35	Wayne	143	↓6	39
36	Phillip	136	↓2	92
37	Walter	135	↓11	25
38	Stephen	124	new	65
39	Terry	124	↑2	83
40	Bill	120	↑4	67
41	Harry	120	↓2	45
42	Eugene	113	–	37
43	Marvin	111	↓5	52
44	Max	111	↓7	>100
45	Billy	109	↓10	24
46	Arthur	107	↓3	32
47	Tom	107	↑2	97
48	Earl	106	new	50
49	Ronnie	106	↑1	>100
50	Gene	102	new	69

← Indiana 1938 Indiana: all years · US 1939 Indiana 1940 →