Popular baby names in South Dakota, 1939

The most popular baby names in South Dakota in 1939 were Mary for girls (215 babies) and Robert for boys (253). Social Security records list 9,606 babies born in South Dakota in 1939 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in South Dakota in 1939

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

Girls

Marlys: 24 babies, 16.3× the national rate
Lavonne: 22 babies, 13.7× the national rate
Mavis: 16 babies, 9.6× the national rate
Marcella: 18 babies, 6.6× the national rate
Verna: 22 babies, 5.5× the national rate
Darlene: 77 babies, 5.4× the national rate
Deanna: 36 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Karen: 108 babies, 4.5× the national rate
Connie: 40 babies, 4.1× the national rate
Sharon: 154 babies, 4× the national rate

Boys

Harlan: 32 babies, 20.7× the national rate
Jerald: 20 babies, 9.9× the national rate
Lyle: 31 babies, 8.4× the national rate
Duane: 53 babies, 8× the national rate
Merle: 18 babies, 7.7× the national rate
Lowell: 21 babies, 5.1× the national rate
Darrell: 28 babies, 4.7× the national rate
Dean: 24 babies, 4.2× the national rate
Dale: 63 babies, 4× the national rate
Roger: 113 babies, 3.6× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in South Dakota, 1939

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Mary	215	–	1
2	Sharon	154	↑4	23
3	Shirley	140	–	5
4	Carol	138	↓2	6
5	Barbara	124	–	2
6	Janice	123	↑2	24
7	Donna	110	↓3	20
8	Betty	108	↓1	4
9	Karen	108	↑8	39
10	Marilyn	94	↓1	19
11	Patricia	94	↓1	3
12	Beverly	78	↓1	25
13	Darlene	77	↑2	75
14	Phyllis	71	↑13	30
15	Joyce	69	↓2	12
16	Janet	65	–	17
17	Dorothy	63	↓5	9
18	Judy	60	↑17	28
19	Marlene	58	–	64
20	Joan	55	↓6	11
21	Judith	55	↑24	8
22	Margaret	55	↓4	10
23	Lois	53	↑7	35
24	Norma	49	↑2	38
25	Sandra	48	↑16	13
26	Bonnie	45	↑16	61
27	Delores	45	↓7	79
28	Nancy	45	↓6	7
29	Ruth	44	↓6	22
30	Virginia	42	↑14	21
31	Kay	41	↑3	76
32	Connie	40	↑6	>100
33	Elaine	39	↑4	45
34	Joann	39	↓6	57
35	Alice	37	↓10	31
36	Helen	37	↓12	16
37	Deanna	36	↓8	>100
38	Carolyn	35	↑1	14
39	Jean	34	↓18	32
40	Rose	34	new	42
41	Doris	33	↓1	29
42	Gloria	33	↓10	36
43	Charlotte	31	new	66
44	Linda	31	new	15
45	Jeanette	30	new	82
46	Yvonne	30	–	90
47	Audrey	29	↑3	98
48	June	28	new	83
49	Marjorie	28	↓18	60
50	Carole	26	new	47

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1938	US rank
1	Robert	253	–	1
2	James	218	–	2
3	Larry	190	↑3	14
4	Richard	177	–	5
5	Donald	165	↓2	8
6	John	152	↓1	3
7	William	131	–	4
8	Ronald	123	–	10
9	Gary	114	↑5	21
10	Roger	113	↑2	28
11	David	108	↓1	7
12	Jerry	103	↓1	16
13	Kenneth	101	↑3	13
14	Dennis	91	↓1	34
15	Gerald	90	–	19
16	Charles	89	↓7	6
17	Thomas	69	↑9	9
18	Dale	63	–	59
19	Eugene	61	↑6	37
20	George	58	↑3	11
21	Duane	53	↓1	>100
22	Paul	53	–	17
23	Marvin	50	↑1	52
24	Gene	44	↑16	69
25	Leroy	44	↓4	61
26	Edward	42	↑4	15
27	Harold	41	↓8	23
28	Michael	41	new	18
29	Wayne	40	↓12	39
30	Lawrence	39	new	36
31	Raymond	37	↓4	22
32	Gordon	36	↑14	82
33	Stanley	36	new	57
34	Joseph	35	↓6	12
35	Harlan	32	new	>100
36	Douglas	31	↓7	58
37	Jack	31	↓6	26
38	Jim	31	–	75
39	Lyle	31	↓7	>100
40	Jerome	29	↑10	93
41	Leonard	29	–	54
42	Darrell	28	↓7	>100
43	Terry	27	↓6	83
44	Clifford	25	↑3	88
45	Melvin	25	↓12	51
46	Vernon	25	new	100
47	Dean	24	new	>100
48	Allen	23	new	72
49	Francis	23	new	53
50	Frank	23	new	20

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