Popular baby names in Iowa, 1921

The most popular baby names in Iowa in 1921 were Mary for girls (1,215 babies) and Robert for boys (1,591). Robert ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 44,632 babies born in Iowa in 1921 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Iowa in 1921

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

Girls

Darlene: 99 babies, 13.9× the national rate
Marlys: 15 babies, 12.3× the national rate
Lavonne: 41 babies, 11.4× the national rate
Ardis: 26 babies, 7.4× the national rate
Myrna: 16 babies, 6.2× the national rate
Arlene: 168 babies, 4.9× the national rate
Velda: 15 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Verla: 16 babies, 4.5× the national rate
Maxine: 289 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Berniece: 33 babies, 4.3× the national rate

Boys

Laverne: 72 babies, 9× the national rate
Lavern: 40 babies, 8× the national rate
Milo: 24 babies, 6.2× the national rate
Darwin: 25 babies, 5.9× the national rate
Merle: 96 babies, 5.8× the national rate
Dean: 98 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Duane: 60 babies, 5.6× the national rate
Darrell: 40 babies, 5.5× the national rate
Keith: 103 babies, 5.2× the national rate
Dick: 36 babies, 5.2× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Iowa, 1921

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1920	US rank
1	Mary	1,215	–	1
2	Dorothy	1,044	–	2
3	Helen	828	–	3
4	Betty	675	↑2	8
5	Ruth	616	–	5
6	Margaret	600	↓2	4
7	Marjorie	452	↑3	16
8	Virginia	433	–	6
9	Evelyn	397	–	12
10	Mildred	373	↓3	7
11	Doris	352	–	13
12	Frances	321	↑1	9
13	Lois	293	↑1	38
14	Maxine	289	↓2	77
15	Alice	288	–	15
16	Jean	263	↑4	25
17	Elizabeth	253	↑4	10
18	Irene	237	–	18
19	Esther	222	↑3	42
20	Lucille	222	↓1	31
21	Phyllis	198	↑11	60
22	Florence	191	↓5	17
23	Marie	191	↓7	14
24	Wilma	185	–	72
25	Gladys	180	↓2	24
26	Bernice	173	↑1	39
27	Anna	170	↓1	11
28	Arlene	168	↑6	>100
29	Norma	164	↑15	51
30	Edna	162	–	27
31	Hazel	162	↓3	34
32	Marian	150	↓3	69
33	Kathryn	143	↑7	64
34	Shirley	142	↑13	44
35	Eleanor	139	↑4	29
36	Martha	139	↑6	21
37	Pauline	138	↓6	37
38	Ethel	133	↑5	32
39	Thelma	131	↓14	30
40	Edith	130	↑1	33
41	Grace	129	↓4	35
42	Barbara	128	new	40
43	Lorraine	128	new	61
44	June	127	↓6	50
45	Lillian	124	↓9	19
46	Louise	123	new	22
47	Viola	123	↓14	66
48	Geraldine	122	↑2	62
49	Catherine	120	–	23
50	Vivian	120	↓4	68

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1920	US rank
1	Robert	1,591	–	2
2	John	1,003	–	1
3	William	804	–	3
4	Donald	756	–	13
5	James	627	↑1	4
6	Charles	571	↓1	5
7	Harold	509	–	12
8	Richard	506	–	10
9	George	423	–	6
10	Kenneth	393	–	22
11	Paul	372	↑1	14
12	Raymond	366	↓1	16
13	Edward	282	–	8
14	Jack	272	↑2	18
15	Clarence	235	↑4	28
16	Warren	221	↑8	24
17	Joseph	220	↓3	7
18	Earl	216	↑4	31
19	Ralph	216	↓4	23
20	Walter	212	↑3	15
21	Eugene	209	↑5	26
22	Howard	206	↓5	27
23	Wayne	206	↑2	81
24	Dale	190	↑3	93
25	Arthur	189	↓7	19
26	Frank	184	↓6	9
27	Harry	184	↓6	21
28	Thomas	182	↑4	11
29	Carl	173	–	30
30	Gerald	160	↑3	60
31	Albert	157	↑7	20
32	Leo	152	↑10	50
33	Francis	151	↓5	35
34	Lawrence	151	↓3	37
35	Lloyd	147	↓5	58
36	Leonard	142	–	39
37	Russell	141	↓2	52
38	Elmer	138	↑5	48
39	Marvin	138	↑8	59
40	Roy	134	↑10	32
41	Floyd	133	–	63
42	Henry	129	↓3	17
43	Clifford	128	↑6	62
44	Glenn	126	↓4	80
45	Melvin	120	↓8	53
46	Vernon	117	↓12	68
47	Bernard	114	↑1	45
48	Louis	114	new	29
49	Max	111	new	>100
50	Leroy	110	new	55

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