Popular baby names in Iowa, 1939

The most popular baby names in Iowa in 1939 were Mary for girls (1,028 babies) and Robert for boys (1,116). Social Security records list 39,306 babies born in Iowa in 1939 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Iowa in 1939

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

Girls

Marvel: 15 babies, 14.6× the national rate
Sheryl: 28 babies, 11.9× the national rate
Marlys: 58 babies, 9.7× the national rate
Lavonne: 49 babies, 7.5× the national rate
Madonna: 17 babies, 7.5× the national rate
Karen: 617 babies, 6.4× the national rate
Ardith: 16 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Cheryl: 26 babies, 5.2× the national rate
Colleen: 46 babies, 4× the national rate
Kay: 204 babies, 3.6× the national rate

Boys

Merlyn: 17 babies, 11.5× the national rate
Laverne: 33 babies, 9.1× the national rate
Darwin: 36 babies, 5.9× the national rate
Daryl: 31 babies, 5.9× the national rate
Merlin: 25 babies, 5.6× the national rate
Lyle: 84 babies, 5.5× the national rate
Harlan: 34 babies, 5.3× the national rate
Lavern: 16 babies, 5.1× the national rate
Dwayne: 19 babies, 4.9× the national rate
Keith: 125 babies, 4.5× the national rate

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

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Mary	1,028	–	1
2	Karen	617	↑3	39
3	Patricia	565	–	3
4	Barbara	562	↓2	2
5	Sharon	527	↑5	23
6	Carol	441	↑1	6
7	Judith	427	↑10	8
8	Sandra	426	↑4	13
9	Shirley	419	↓5	5
10	Betty	386	↑1	4
11	Donna	379	↓3	20
12	Nancy	378	↑2	7
13	Marilyn	377	↓4	19
14	Joyce	374	↑2	12
15	Janice	372	↓9	24
16	Judy	347	↑7	28
17	Janet	329	↓2	17
18	Beverly	287	↓5	25
19	Joan	253	↑2	11
20	Carolyn	247	↓1	14
21	Linda	221	↑9	15
22	Margaret	216	↓4	10
23	Kay	204	↑6	76
24	Ruth	204	↓2	22
25	Dorothy	189	↓1	9
26	Phyllis	180	↓6	30
27	Darlene	172	↓2	75
28	Joann	162	↑3	57
29	Marlene	162	↓2	64
30	Lois	158	↓4	35
31	Helen	153	↑1	16
32	Virginia	147	↑1	21
33	Norma	142	↓5	38
34	Elizabeth	133	↑7	18
35	Jean	133	↓1	32
36	Jane	125	↑10	46
37	Susan	121	new	44
38	Sally	118	↑6	52
39	Bonnie	117	↓2	61
40	Doris	112	↓5	29
41	Alice	106	↓2	31
42	Connie	105	↑1	>100
43	Marjorie	105	↓5	60
44	Delores	102	↓4	79
45	Kathryn	100	new	>100
46	Carole	99	↑1	47
47	Elaine	97	↓2	45
48	Evelyn	94	new	40
49	Diane	93	new	51
50	Kathleen	90	↓8	48

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Robert	1,116	–	1
2	Larry	991	↑1	14
3	James	915	↓1	2
4	Richard	913	–	5
5	John	856	–	3
6	Ronald	640	↑1	10
7	Donald	639	↓1	8
8	Gary	625	–	21
9	William	573	–	4
10	David	566	–	7
11	Jerry	461	–	16
12	Charles	455	–	6
13	Roger	341	↑1	28
14	Kenneth	331	↓1	13
15	Dennis	309	↑3	34
16	Thomas	309	–	9
17	Gerald	262	↓2	19
18	Paul	259	↓1	17
19	Michael	200	↑7	18
20	Jack	195	↓1	26
21	George	180	↓1	11
22	Harold	174	↑1	23
23	Marvin	168	↑2	52
24	Dale	167	↓3	59
25	Joseph	157	↑6	12
26	Edward	147	↓2	15
27	Wayne	141	↓5	39
28	Raymond	131	↓1	22
29	Terry	131	↑16	83
30	Jim	129	↓2	75
31	Keith	125	↓1	>100
32	Don	116	↑2	56
33	Bill	113	↑5	67
34	Duane	113	↓5	>100
35	Eugene	109	↓3	37
36	Dean	106	↑1	>100
37	Norman	103	↓4	44
38	Lawrence	100	↓2	36
39	Carl	97	↓4	30
40	Douglas	96	new	58
41	Frank	93	–	20
42	Darrell	91	↑5	>100
43	Fred	87	–	40
44	Lyle	84	new	>100
45	Howard	80	↑1	47
46	Gene	78	↓2	69
47	Russell	78	new	73
48	Jon	76	new	>100
49	Ronnie	76	new	>100
50	Tom	74	new	97

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