Popular baby names in Virginia, 1946

The most popular baby names in Virginia in 1946 were Mary for girls (1,562 babies) and James for boys (2,400). Social Security records list 65,426 babies born in Virginia in 1946 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in Virginia in 1946

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: 22 babies, 8.7× the national rate
Shelby: 52 babies, 6.4× the national rate
Gracie: 30 babies, 4.1× the national rate
Mable: 38 babies, 3.9× the national rate
Estelle: 23 babies, 3.8× the national rate
Beulah: 27 babies, 3.7× the national rate
Thelma: 117 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Beverley: 23 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Mabel: 22 babies, 3.2× the national rate
Geneva: 59 babies, 3× the national rate

Boys

Beverly: 18 babies, 13.6× the national rate
Linwood: 51 babies, 10.7× the national rate
Garland: 61 babies, 7.7× the national rate
Aubrey: 37 babies, 5.4× the national rate
Thurman: 23 babies, 4.4× the national rate
Carroll: 60 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Carlton: 47 babies, 4.3× the national rate
Woodrow: 40 babies, 4.2× the national rate
Randolph: 70 babies, 4.1× the national rate
Elwood: 20 babies, 4.1× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in Virginia, 1946

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1945	US rank
1	Mary	1,562	–	1
2	Linda	1,256	↑1	2
3	Barbara	1,072	↓1	4
4	Patricia	995	–	3
5	Betty	812	–	14
6	Brenda	741	↑3	24
7	Sandra	730	↑3	6
8	Carolyn	728	↓1	12
9	Nancy	693	↓1	7
10	Shirley	693	↓4	18
11	Joyce	576	–	20
12	Margaret	496	–	17
13	Judy	465	↑1	11
14	Carol	446	↓1	5
15	Dorothy	405	–	23
16	Gloria	377	↑1	26
17	Judith	377	↓1	10
18	Virginia	344	↑1	31
19	Elizabeth	342	↓1	25
20	Sharon	330	↑11	9
21	Susan	329	↑6	8
22	Martha	325	↑3	32
23	Frances	314	↓3	39
24	Phyllis	299	↓1	41
25	Peggy	296	↑1	43
26	Donna	273	↑7	13
27	Helen	257	↓5	36
28	Janice	248	↑2	22
29	Joan	248	↓5	28
30	Doris	244	↓9	51
31	Jean	228	↑3	37
32	Alice	225	↓4	44
33	Bonnie	224	↑4	33
34	Rebecca	218	↑4	68
35	Ruth	214	↓6	38
36	Janet	211	↓4	21
37	Patsy	203	↑4	85
38	Ann	197	↓3	40
39	Diane	189	↑7	19
40	Evelyn	186	↓4	65
41	Jane	180	↑3	35
42	Wanda	175	–	59
43	Lois	168	↓3	55
44	Mildred	161	↓1	>100
45	Sylvia	155	new	82
46	Beverly	152	new	30
47	Charlotte	149	↓8	64
48	Ruby	146	↑2	>100
49	Anne	140	new	81
50	Connie	139	new	45

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1945	US rank
1	James	2,400	–	1
2	William	1,744	–	4
3	Robert	1,614	–	2
4	John	1,491	–	3
5	Charles	1,116	–	9
6	Richard	889	↑1	5
7	Thomas	771	↓1	8
8	David	739	–	6
9	George	646	–	16
10	Ronald	583	↑1	10
11	Donald	575	↓1	13
12	Larry	572	↑1	11
13	Michael	490	↑4	7
14	Jerry	434	↑2	20
15	Joseph	432	↓3	14
16	Roger	421	↓2	23
17	Edward	418	↓2	19
18	Kenneth	399	–	15
19	Gary	311	↑3	12
20	Paul	290	↓1	18
21	Walter	281	↑5	30
22	Raymond	255	↑1	25
23	Roy	251	↑1	43
24	Wayne	250	↑8	29
25	Dennis	239	↑12	17
26	Bobby	227	↑2	53
27	Billy	219	↑9	45
28	Samuel	216	↑13	70
29	Harry	215	↓8	50
30	Frank	212	↓1	22
31	Douglas	210	↓11	34
32	Henry	209	↓2	41
33	Harold	208	↓8	33
34	Ralph	194	↓1	48
35	Willie	192	↓8	40
36	Ronnie	187	↑11	54
37	Carl	186	↓6	39
38	Danny	183	new	46
39	Clarence	181	↓4	89
40	Daniel	179	↑5	21
41	Earl	176	↓3	82
42	Stephen	164	↑2	24
43	Jimmy	161	↑6	42
44	Lawrence	160	↑4	31
45	Ernest	158	↓5	71
46	Johnny	148	↓4	47
47	Arthur	146	↓13	36
48	Gerald	145	↓5	27
49	Howard	140	↓10	55
50	Melvin	137	↓4	86

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