Popular baby names in North Dakota, 1938

The most popular baby names in North Dakota in 1938 were Mary for girls (204 babies) and Robert for boys (280). Social Security records list 10,562 babies born in North Dakota in 1938 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in North Dakota in 1938

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

Girls

Marlys: 50 babies, 29.1× the national rate
Mavis: 30 babies, 16.2× the national rate
Luella: 18 babies, 12.8× the national rate
Lavonne: 22 babies, 10.5× the national rate
Ilene: 15 babies, 9.2× the national rate
Darlene: 96 babies, 6.1× the national rate
Laverne: 18 babies, 5.9× the national rate
Delores: 67 babies, 4.2× the national rate
Janice: 170 babies, 4.1× the national rate
Violet: 19 babies, 4.1× the national rate

Boys

Myron: 31 babies, 11.2× the national rate
Darrel: 22 babies, 9.9× the national rate
Duane: 74 babies, 9.6× the national rate
Lyle: 26 babies, 6.9× the national rate
Dennis: 95 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Jerome: 48 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Darrell: 29 babies, 4.5× the national rate
Rodney: 27 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Allan: 27 babies, 3.7× the national rate
Virgil: 19 babies, 3.7× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in North Dakota, 1938

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1937	US rank
1	Mary	204	↑1	1
2	Janice	170	↑1	24
3	Shirley	153	↓2	5
4	Carol	135	–	6
5	Betty	122	↑1	4
6	Sharon	119	↑14	30
7	Patricia	112	↓2	3
8	Beverly	106	↑8	18
9	Barbara	104	↑4	2
10	Darlene	96	↓3	76
11	Donna	86	↓3	20
12	Margaret	85	↑3	9
13	Marlene	82	↓4	51
14	Karen	78	↑14	50
15	Joyce	69	↓1	11
16	Arlene	68	↓4	63
17	Delores	67	↑4	75
18	Marilyn	66	↓7	19
19	Janet	63	↑5	16
20	Phyllis	62	↑6	28
21	Jean	58	↑10	27
22	Dorothy	56	↓5	8
23	Helen	56	↓13	13
24	Judith	56	new	12
25	Lois	55	↓3	33
26	Elaine	53	↓7	42
27	Joann	52	↑11	68
28	Joan	51	↓10	10
29	Alice	50	↓2	29
30	Marlys	50	↓1	>100
31	Gloria	47	↑9	36
32	Virginia	47	↓7	22
33	Audrey	44	↓1	87
34	Doris	44	↓4	25
35	Joanne	40	↓1	57
36	Bonnie	39	↑10	65
37	Loretta	39	new	62
38	Irene	38	↑3	72
39	Ruth	38	↓6	21
40	Eileen	37	↓17	>100
41	Yvonne	37	↑1	>100
42	Rose	35	↓6	39
43	Frances	34	↓6	23
44	Lorraine	33	↓5	93
45	Marjorie	32	↓2	53
46	Carolyn	30	new	15
47	Kathleen	30	↓12	58
48	Mavis	30	new	>100
49	Diane	29	new	64
50	Anna	27	new	40

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1937	US rank
1	Robert	280	–	1
2	James	249	↑1	2
3	Donald	231	↓1	7
4	Richard	196	–	5
5	John	179	–	3
6	Ronald	124	–	10
7	David	121	↑2	8
8	Gary	118	↑6	22
9	William	107	↑3	4
10	Gerald	106	↓2	19
11	Kenneth	106	↓1	14
12	Dennis	95	↓1	49
13	Larry	95	↓6	16
14	Charles	88	↓1	6
15	Roger	76	↑1	31
16	Duane	74	↓1	>100
17	Thomas	70	↑5	9
18	Raymond	66	↑2	20
19	Dale	62	↑10	56
20	Paul	58	↑4	15
21	Wayne	56	–	40
22	Eugene	55	↓5	33
23	George	54	↓5	11
24	Jerry	54	↑3	17
25	Marvin	54	↓6	53
26	Jerome	48	–	93
27	Gordon	46	↑1	78
28	Daniel	43	↑9	39
29	Edward	43	↓4	13
30	Leroy	41	↑2	61
31	Douglas	35	new	60
32	Jack	35	↑8	25
33	Joseph	35	↓2	12
34	Lawrence	35	↑1	36
35	Bruce	33	↑12	66
36	Harold	33	↓13	23
37	Allen	32	↑1	73
38	Clarence	32	↑10	58
39	Norman	32	↓9	43
40	Ralph	32	new	35
41	Curtis	31	new	>100
42	Gene	31	new	65
43	Myron	31	↑2	>100
44	Leo	30	new	>100
45	Michael	30	new	21
46	Darrell	29	new	>100
47	Melvin	29	↓3	54
48	Vernon	29	↓15	>100
49	Leonard	28	↑1	57
50	Allan	27	new	>100

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