Popular baby names in Iowa, 1927

The most popular baby names in Iowa in 1927 were Mary for girls (1,170 babies) and Robert for boys (1,497). Social Security records list 39,417 babies born in Iowa in 1927 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Iowa in 1927

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

Girls

Marlys: 39 babies, 15× the national rate
Darlene: 247 babies, 13.5× the national rate
Lavonne: 56 babies, 10.9× the national rate
Madonna: 16 babies, 8.7× the national rate
Lavon: 17 babies, 7.8× the national rate
Darline: 15 babies, 7.1× the national rate
Ardis: 22 babies, 6.7× the national rate
Gretchen: 15 babies, 6.4× the national rate
Myrna: 20 babies, 6× the national rate
Verla: 19 babies, 5.9× the national rate

Boys

Merlyn: 28 babies, 14× the national rate
Daryl: 18 babies, 8.8× the national rate
Merlin: 54 babies, 7.9× the national rate
Darrell: 76 babies, 7.2× the national rate
Milo: 19 babies, 7.2× the national rate
Laverne: 52 babies, 7× the national rate
Duane: 122 babies, 6.4× the national rate
Delmar: 38 babies, 6.1× the national rate
Vern: 23 babies, 6× the national rate
Dean: 125 babies, 5.4× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Iowa, 1927

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1926	US rank
1	Mary	1,170	↑1	1
2	Betty	1,026	↓1	3
3	Dorothy	672	–	2
4	Helen	432	–	4
5	Shirley	431	↑3	9
6	Ruth	419	↓1	6
7	Lois	379	–	19
8	Doris	363	↑1	7
9	Margaret	358	↓3	5
10	Phyllis	351	–	29
11	Patricia	346	↑4	18
12	Virginia	310	↓1	8
13	Barbara	307	–	10
14	Norma	294	–	26
15	Marjorie	290	↓3	25
16	Darlene	247	↑4	>100
17	Donna	236	↑4	70
18	Jean	232	↓1	14
19	Evelyn	222	↓3	15
20	Marilyn	220	↑6	46
21	Beverly	214	↑3	57
22	Mildred	211	↓4	11
23	Alice	204	↓1	17
24	Joyce	187	↑5	35
25	Frances	170	↓6	12
26	Arlene	153	↓1	>100
27	Bonnie	146	↑9	100
28	Maxine	145	↓5	87
29	Anna	142	↑10	16
30	Dolores	138	↑17	34
31	Joan	135	↓1	41
32	Lucille	134	↑5	45
33	Elizabeth	132	↓2	13
34	Marian	124	↓1	74
35	Irene	119	↓3	21
36	Florence	112	↑7	28
37	Wanda	111	new	66
38	Audrey	108	↑3	62
39	Elaine	108	↑3	69
40	Marie	108	↓12	20
41	Wilma	107	↓14	68
42	Lorraine	106	↓8	44
43	Geraldine	104	↓5	58
44	Gladys	102	–	37
45	Kathleen	100	new	83
46	Martha	99	↓1	24
47	Edna	98	new	40
48	Rosemary	96	new	86
49	Esther	95	new	65
50	Rose	93	↓15	23

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1926	US rank
1	Robert	1,497	–	1
2	Donald	975	–	8
3	John	846	–	2
4	William	738	–	4
5	Richard	735	–	6
6	James	711	–	3
7	Charles	495	–	5
8	Harold	432	–	14
9	Kenneth	404	–	18
10	Jack	314	↑3	16
11	Paul	310	–	13
12	George	292	↓2	7
13	Raymond	280	↓1	15
14	Eugene	232	↑2	20
15	Edward	216	–	10
16	Gerald	205	↑2	38
17	Dale	195	↓3	81
18	Thomas	195	↑2	11
19	Wayne	193	↓2	67
20	Marvin	185	↑2	47
21	Howard	171	↑2	28
22	Ralph	167	↓3	24
23	Carl	156	↑2	26
24	Joseph	155	↓3	9
25	Earl	146	↓1	33
26	David	135	↑10	21
27	Harry	135	↑12	25
28	Ronald	135	new	63
29	Arthur	134	↓3	22
30	Lloyd	132	↑7	58
31	Russell	131	↓3	54
32	Clarence	129	↓2	32
33	Dean	125	↑2	>100
34	Walter	125	↓5	17
35	Duane	122	new	>100
36	Melvin	121	↓9	48
37	Frank	118	↓4	12
38	Lawrence	117	↓6	37
39	Roger	117	new	84
40	Norman	114	↓2	39
41	Vernon	112	↓7	71
42	Francis	109	↓11	36
43	Leo	108	↑1	55
44	Don	105	new	90
45	Leroy	104	↑3	51
46	Leonard	97	↓6	40
47	Roy	96	new	34
48	Gene	95	new	72
49	Lyle	94	↓8	>100
50	Glenn	93	↓7	76

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