Popular baby names in Maryland, 1940

The most popular baby names in Maryland in 1940 were Mary for girls (906 babies) and William for boys (869). William ranked #4 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 26,479 babies born in Maryland in 1940 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Maryland in 1940

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

Girls

Regina: 27 babies, 3.3× the national rate
Hilda: 27 babies, 3× the national rate
Catherine: 145 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Rosetta: 15 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Rosalie: 49 babies, 2.5× the national rate
Delores: 80 babies, 2.4× the national rate
Agnes: 33 babies, 2.4× the national rate
Pearl: 21 babies, 2× the national rate
Antoinette: 17 babies, 2× the national rate
Miriam: 17 babies, 2× the national rate

Boys

Carroll: 41 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Irvin: 20 babies, 4.2× the national rate
Reginald: 19 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Calvin: 48 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Clifton: 21 babies, 2.8× the national rate
Nelson: 25 babies, 2.7× the national rate
Wilbur: 22 babies, 2.7× the national rate
Francis: 110 babies, 2.6× the national rate
Harry: 135 babies, 2.5× the national rate
Bernard: 72 babies, 2.5× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Maryland, 1940

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1939	US rank
1	Mary	906	–	1
2	Patricia	566	↑1	3
3	Barbara	546	↓1	2
4	Margaret	324	↑3	11
5	Joan	297	↑1	14
6	Nancy	290	↓1	7
7	Shirley	276	↓3	9
8	Dorothy	272	↑1	12
9	Betty	260	↓1	5
10	Joyce	211	↑3	13
11	Elizabeth	190	–	20
12	Carolyn	181	↑4	15
13	Carol	170	↑1	6
14	Helen	170	↓2	18
15	Judith	166	↑9	4
16	Ruth	158	↑1	24
17	Sandra	153	↑8	10
18	Linda	149	↑14	8
19	Catherine	145	↓9	53
20	Beverly	142	↓1	27
21	Doris	142	↓3	31
22	Frances	133	↓7	28
23	Virginia	132	–	21
24	Gloria	122	↑2	30
25	Janet	122	↓5	19
26	Jean	121	↓5	29
27	Brenda	116	new	42
28	Ann	112	↑1	35
29	Geraldine	101	↑8	46
30	Alice	100	–	32
31	Phyllis	96	↓9	33
32	Anna	95	↓4	51
33	Charlotte	93	↑3	55
34	Peggy	92	↑13	37
35	Carole	84	↑13	49
36	Mildred	83	↑3	58
37	Rose	83	↑4	44
38	Martha	82	↑2	26
39	Delores	80	↓8	83
40	Evelyn	77	↓6	48
41	Janice	77	↑1	22
42	Jane	71	new	47
43	Susan	71	new	36
44	Elaine	70	↓11	50
45	Lois	68	↓10	38
46	Norma	68	–	43
47	Ellen	67	new	74
48	Marie	66	↓21	41
49	Bonnie	64	new	39
50	Kathleen	63	new	40

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1939	US rank
1	William	869	↑2	4
2	John	868	–	3
3	Robert	868	↓2	2
4	James	828	–	1
5	Charles	682	–	6
6	Richard	478	↑1	5
7	George	359	↑1	11
8	Joseph	358	↓2	12
9	Thomas	346	↑1	8
10	Donald	286	↓1	9
11	Edward	285	↑2	16
12	David	283	–	7
13	Ronald	283	↓2	10
14	Paul	192	–	17
15	Kenneth	180	–	15
16	Raymond	158	↑4	22
17	Michael	152	↓1	18
18	Walter	141	↓1	25
19	Harry	135	–	47
20	Frank	133	↓2	20
21	Howard	121	↑2	45
22	Albert	112	↑2	41
23	Melvin	111	↑4	53
24	Francis	110	↓3	61
25	Lawrence	109	↑4	36
26	Wayne	101	↓4	39
27	Louis	96	↑3	50
28	Gerald	92	↑15	21
29	Arthur	90	↓3	33
30	Harold	90	↑2	23
31	Frederick	87	↑6	68
32	Eugene	84	↑13	38
33	Earl	82	↑2	52
34	Carl	81	↓1	32
35	Henry	78	↓10	31
36	Larry	76	↑8	13
37	Bernard	72	↑3	82
38	Daniel	72	↑3	34
39	Gary	72	↓5	19
40	Norman	71	↓1	48
41	Philip	71	new	60
42	Ralph	69	↓11	37
43	Samuel	69	↓15	65
44	Dennis	68	new	24
45	Stanley	66	↓7	59
46	Jerry	65	↑4	14
47	Anthony	63	↑2	46
48	Jerome	61	–	95
49	Ernest	58	↓7	58
50	Clarence	56	↓14	64

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