Popular baby names in Iowa, 1938

The most popular baby names in Iowa in 1938 were Mary for girls (1,087 babies) and Robert for boys (1,128). Social Security records list 38,960 babies born in Iowa in 1938 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Iowa in 1938

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

Girls

Sheryl: 31 babies, 11.7× the national rate
Marlys: 52 babies, 8.4× the national rate
Verla: 19 babies, 8.3× the national rate
Lavonne: 57 babies, 7.6× the national rate
Madonna: 17 babies, 6.6× the national rate
Karen: 462 babies, 6× the national rate
Marla: 17 babies, 5.9× the national rate
Colleen: 55 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Dixie: 85 babies, 4× the national rate
Cheryl: 27 babies, 4× the national rate

Boys

Merlyn: 20 babies, 10.1× the national rate
Marlyn: 15 babies, 10.1× the national rate
Merlin: 32 babies, 6.2× the national rate
Laverne: 31 babies, 6× the national rate
Gail: 21 babies, 6× the national rate
Daryl: 26 babies, 5.9× the national rate
Lyle: 73 babies, 5.1× the national rate
Eldon: 41 babies, 5× the national rate
Harlan: 34 babies, 5× the national rate
Darwin: 30 babies, 4.9× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Iowa, 1938

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1937	US rank
1	Mary	1,087	–	1
2	Barbara	542	↑2	2
3	Patricia	514	–	3
4	Shirley	469	↓2	5
5	Karen	462	↑28	50
6	Janice	457	↓1	24
7	Carol	447	↑3	6
8	Donna	433	↓2	20
9	Marilyn	419	↓1	19
10	Sharon	405	↑6	30
11	Betty	400	↓4	4
12	Sandra	382	–	14
13	Beverly	377	↓4	18
14	Nancy	371	↓1	7
15	Janet	337	↓4	16
16	Joyce	320	↓2	11
17	Judith	284	↑11	12
18	Margaret	235	↓1	9
19	Carolyn	227	↑3	15
20	Phyllis	222	↓1	28
21	Joan	217	↓3	10
22	Ruth	210	↑2	21
23	Judy	208	↑15	41
24	Dorothy	204	↓9	8
25	Darlene	200	↓2	76
26	Lois	200	↓5	33
27	Marlene	175	↓7	51
28	Norma	174	↓3	34
29	Kay	167	↑3	81
30	Linda	157	new	31
31	Joann	153	↓4	68
32	Helen	149	↓3	13
33	Virginia	141	↓7	22
34	Jean	133	↓4	27
35	Doris	125	↓4	25
36	Rosalie	114	new	66
37	Bonnie	110	↓3	65
38	Marjorie	107	↓3	53
39	Alice	106	↓3	29
40	Delores	104	↓3	75
41	Elizabeth	103	↑2	17
42	Kathleen	103	new	58
43	Connie	102	new	>100
44	Sally	102	↓3	54
45	Elaine	97	↓5	42
46	Jane	97	↓1	44
47	Carole	93	new	46
48	Rose	93	↓1	39
49	Ann	89	new	32
50	Frances	86	↓6	23

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1937	US rank
1	Robert	1,128	–	1
2	James	971	↑1	2
3	Larry	891	↑3	16
4	Richard	881	↓2	5
5	John	845	↓1	3
6	Donald	721	↓1	7
7	Ronald	609	–	10
8	Gary	561	↑2	22
9	William	559	↓1	4
10	David	506	↓1	8
11	Jerry	455	↑1	17
12	Charles	407	↓1	6
13	Kenneth	365	–	14
14	Roger	314	↑1	31
15	Gerald	290	↑2	19
16	Thomas	279	–	9
17	Paul	226	↓3	15
18	Dennis	210	↑8	49
19	Jack	208	↓1	25
20	George	203	–	11
21	Dale	196	–	56
22	Wayne	188	–	40
23	Harold	175	↓4	23
24	Edward	165	↓1	13
25	Marvin	164	–	53
26	Michael	163	↑10	21
27	Raymond	162	↓3	20
28	Jim	146	↑4	81
29	Duane	139	↓2	>100
30	Keith	130	↑5	>100
31	Joseph	126	↓2	12
32	Eugene	117	↓4	33
33	Norman	117	–	43
34	Don	106	↓4	52
35	Carl	104	↑2	29
36	Lawrence	104	↑10	36
37	Dean	102	↓3	>100
38	Bill	99	↑4	67
39	Ralph	97	↑8	35
40	Gordon	92	new	78
41	Frank	91	↓10	18
42	Leroy	90	↓2	61
43	Fred	89	↑2	38
44	Gene	86	↓6	65
45	Terry	85	↓2	86
46	Howard	83	new	42
47	Darrell	81	↓3	>100
48	Leonard	80	new	57
49	Bob	79	↑1	94
50	Francis	79	↓1	51

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