Popular baby names in North Carolina, 1931

The most popular baby names in North Carolina in 1931 were Mary for girls (2,443 babies) and James for boys (2,637). James ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 65,389 babies born in North Carolina in 1931 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in North Carolina in 1931

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

Girls

Johnsie: 25 babies, 23.9× the national rate
Nannie: 60 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Pattie: 20 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Doretha: 27 babies, 5.4× the national rate
Sallie: 80 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Peggie: 22 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Queen: 33 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Pansy: 31 babies, 4.4× the national rate
Magdalene: 17 babies, 4.4× the national rate
Sadie: 100 babies, 4.3× the national rate

Boys

Zeb: 16 babies, 22.9× the national rate
Worth: 19 babies, 15.2× the national rate
Haywood: 28 babies, 11× the national rate
Linwood: 48 babies, 10.1× the national rate
Lacy: 23 babies, 9.5× the national rate
Graham: 27 babies, 8.9× the national rate
Boyce: 26 babies, 7.3× the national rate
Winford: 19 babies, 7.3× the national rate
Wade: 64 babies, 7× the national rate
Kelly: 26 babies, 6.6× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in North Carolina, 1931

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1930	US rank
1	Mary	2,443	–	1
2	Betty	1,608	–	2
3	Dorothy	962	–	3
4	Margaret	741	↑1	7
5	Annie	676	↓1	41
6	Doris	594	–	10
7	Helen	585	–	6
8	Peggy	551	↑7	42
9	Frances	478	↑2	18
10	Ruth	438	–	11
11	Mildred	435	↓3	26
12	Barbara	433	↑13	4
13	Ruby	430	↓4	39
14	Martha	413	↓2	28
15	Virginia	403	↓2	12
16	Nancy	387	–	17
17	Elizabeth	369	↓3	16
18	Sarah	354	↓1	71
19	Evelyn	349	↑1	24
20	Hazel	308	↓1	74
21	Edna	302	↓3	52
22	Louise	270	↓1	33
23	Joyce	265	↑4	15
24	Alice	261	↓1	21
25	Gladys	254	↓3	55
26	Clara	230	↑2	61
27	Ethel	228	↑3	67
28	Lillie	228	↑5	>100
29	Thelma	228	↓5	53
30	Jean	225	↑1	13
31	Emma	219	↑6	76
32	Edith	201	↑3	65
33	Lois	197	↓7	20
34	Willie	191	–	93
35	Marie	182	↓6	27
36	Nellie	180	↑8	>100
37	Catherine	179	↓5	36
38	Pauline	175	↓2	56
39	Margie	174	↑9	>100
40	Mattie	172	↑1	>100
41	Shirley	169	new	9
42	Juanita	164	↓3	57
43	Geraldine	163	new	38
44	Lucille	159	↓6	62
45	Rosa	159	↓3	>100
46	Rachel	156	↑1	>100
47	Minnie	155	↓2	>100
48	Lillian	154	↓8	47
49	Bertha	152	new	>100
50	Carolyn	150	new	60

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1930	US rank
1	James	2,637	–	2
2	William	1,800	–	4
3	Robert	1,428	↑1	1
4	John	1,307	↓1	3
5	Charles	996	–	6
6	George	682	–	8
7	Bobby	591	↑5	32
8	Billy	575	↑1	19
9	Thomas	560	↓2	10
10	Willie	461	↓2	31
11	Jack	401	↑2	15
12	Joseph	397	↓1	9
13	David	380	↓3	13
14	Richard	380	↑2	5
15	Edward	357	–	11
16	Walter	347	↑1	20
17	Paul	338	↓3	12
18	Henry	327	–	22
19	Donald	324	↑5	7
20	Harold	302	↑1	18
21	Ralph	274	↑4	25
22	Fred	272	↓2	33
23	Joe	265	↓4	29
24	Roy	263	↓1	35
25	Frank	248	↑1	16
26	Charlie	247	↓4	94
27	Clarence	220	–	39
28	Kenneth	220	↑2	14
29	Carl	211	–	28
30	Howard	205	↓2	34
31	Earl	201	↑3	40
32	Ernest	198	↑1	47
33	Raymond	195	↑4	17
34	Samuel	192	↑2	56
35	Herbert	189	↓3	41
36	Clyde	179	↓5	77
37	Eugene	173	↓2	21
38	Arthur	163	↑1	23
39	Ray	161	↑1	60
40	Harry	156	↑1	30
41	Albert	155	↓3	24
42	Jesse	154	–	97
43	Marvin	146	↑3	45
44	Floyd	130	–	66
45	Melvin	125	↑5	51
46	Jerry	120	new	43
47	Leroy	120	↑2	52
48	Herman	119	↓5	83
49	Cecil	115	new	>100
50	Johnnie	114	↓2	>100

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