Popular baby names in Virginia, 1938

The most popular baby names in Virginia in 1938 were Mary for girls (1,385 babies) and James for boys (1,806). James ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 47,128 babies born in Virginia in 1938 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Virginia in 1938

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

Girls

Nannie: 29 babies, 6.4× the national rate
Lelia: 17 babies, 4.9× the national rate
Shelva: 16 babies, 4.5× the national rate
Shelby: 149 babies, 4× the national rate
Estelle: 38 babies, 3.9× the national rate
Virgie: 21 babies, 3.7× the national rate
Beulah: 52 babies, 3.5× the national rate
Elsie: 130 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Gracie: 33 babies, 3.4× the national rate
Rosa: 106 babies, 3.1× the national rate

Boys

Linwood: 51 babies, 13.5× the national rate
Garland: 67 babies, 8.6× the national rate
Randolph: 46 babies, 6.7× the national rate
Shirley: 37 babies, 6.6× the national rate
Winston: 20 babies, 5.5× the national rate
Aubrey: 41 babies, 5× the national rate
Buford: 19 babies, 4.6× the national rate
Wilmer: 16 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Woodrow: 36 babies, 4.2× the national rate
Elwood: 28 babies, 4.2× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Virginia, 1938

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1937	US rank
1	Mary	1,385	–	1
2	Shirley	1,025	–	5
3	Barbara	942	↑1	2
4	Betty	942	↓1	4
5	Nancy	580	–	7
6	Dorothy	478	–	8
7	Margaret	401	–	9
8	Joyce	373	↑3	11
9	Frances	370	↓1	23
10	Patricia	365	↑3	3
11	Peggy	342	↑3	35
12	Virginia	321	↓3	22
13	Doris	317	↓1	25
14	Helen	312	↓4	13
15	Elizabeth	290	–	17
16	Jean	270	–	27
17	Martha	255	↑1	26
18	Ruth	223	↓1	21
19	Phyllis	218	↑1	28
20	Alice	213	↑2	29
21	Mildred	209	–	52
22	Carolyn	206	↑11	15
23	Evelyn	197	–	38
24	Annie	180	–	47
25	Joan	177	–	10
26	Ruby	177	↓7	61
27	Ann	168	↑2	32
28	Lois	162	↓2	33
29	Thelma	158	↓1	86
30	Norma	151	↑8	34
31	Shelby	149	↓4	>100
32	Gladys	141	–	>100
33	Charlotte	138	↑6	70
34	Sylvia	138	↑1	56
35	Anna	137	↓1	40
36	Janice	136	↑5	24
37	Edith	135	↓1	>100
38	Gloria	135	↓1	36
39	Janet	133	↑11	16
40	Elsie	130	new	>100
41	Patsy	129	↑1	55
42	Edna	128	↑2	82
43	Sarah	121	↓13	67
44	Carol	115	↓1	6
45	Wanda	115	new	49
46	Ethel	114	new	94
47	Catherine	113	↓2	48
48	Marie	112	new	37
49	Sandra	112	new	14
50	Loretta	111	new	62

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1937	US rank
1	James	1,806	–	2
2	William	1,314	–	4
3	Robert	1,235	–	1
4	John	1,014	–	3
5	Charles	803	–	6
6	George	501	–	11
7	Donald	494	↑2	7
8	Thomas	481	↓1	9
9	Richard	464	↓1	5
10	David	364	↑3	8
11	Joseph	351	–	12
12	Edward	330	–	13
13	Bobby	281	↓3	27
14	Paul	258	↑1	15
15	Kenneth	249	↑1	14
16	Billy	241	↑1	24
17	Walter	220	↓3	26
18	Harold	219	↑2	23
19	Raymond	212	↓1	20
20	Frank	200	↑4	18
21	Ronald	193	↑8	10
22	Harry	190	↑3	44
23	Henry	172	–	30
24	Roy	165	↑3	41
25	Ralph	164	↑1	35
26	Joe	161	↓7	28
27	Clarence	160	↓5	58
28	Howard	158	↑5	42
29	Willie	158	↓8	34
30	Melvin	157	↑9	54
31	Carl	153	↓3	29
32	Jerry	152	↑9	17
33	Earl	146	↓1	50
34	Jack	145	↓3	25
35	Charlie	140	↑11	>100
36	Fred	136	↑2	38
37	Samuel	135	↓7	62
38	Ernest	134	↑2	55
39	Eugene	130	↓2	33
40	Arthur	127	↓4	32
41	Larry	123	↑4	16
42	Lawrence	120	↓7	36
43	Herbert	116	–	68
44	Lewis	113	new	>100
45	Albert	105	↓1	37
46	Curtis	105	↓4	>100
47	Jimmy	105	↑1	45
48	Franklin	104	↓14	100
49	Marvin	101	new	53
50	Clyde	98	new	97

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