Popular baby names in West Virginia, 1936

The most popular baby names in West Virginia in 1936 were Mary for girls (1,084 babies) and James for boys (1,287). James ranked #2 nationally for boys. Social Security records list 36,334 babies born in West Virginia in 1936 with a name given to at least five children of the same sex in the state.

Names that stood out in West Virginia in 1936

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

Girls

Shelva: 26 babies, 16.6× the national rate
Garnet: 22 babies, 16.2× the national rate
Emogene: 15 babies, 7.7× the national rate
Freda: 58 babies, 6.6× the national rate
Shelba: 18 babies, 6.1× the national rate
Goldie: 33 babies, 5.7× the national rate
Shelby: 92 babies, 4.9× the national rate
Patty: 86 babies, 4.9× the national rate
Glenna: 36 babies, 4.8× the national rate
Wilda: 20 babies, 4.7× the national rate

Boys

Okey: 34 babies, 54.5× the national rate
Jennings: 24 babies, 21.3× the national rate
Denzil: 16 babies, 14.4× the national rate
Denver: 30 babies, 12.6× the national rate
Jackson: 18 babies, 6.2× the national rate
Shirley: 40 babies, 6.1× the national rate
Basil: 20 babies, 6.1× the national rate
Emory: 19 babies, 5.6× the national rate
Alva: 17 babies, 5.5× the national rate
Dallas: 31 babies, 5× the national rate

Top 50 girls' and boys' names in West Virginia, 1936

Girls
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1935	US rank
1	Mary	1,084	–	1
2	Shirley	1,037	↑1	2
3	Betty	814	↓1	4
4	Barbara	514	–	3
5	Patricia	435	–	5
6	Nancy	397	↑2	8
7	Phyllis	328	–	25
8	Helen	295	↓2	11
9	Margaret	282	↑1	9
10	Dorothy	237	↓1	6
11	Norma	235	–	29
12	Ruth	232	↑3	16
13	Anna	231	↑1	36
14	Virginia	223	↓2	14
15	Peggy	199	↑16	35
16	Carol	198	↑4	10
17	Janet	190	↓1	21
18	Doris	188	↓5	15
19	Elizabeth	166	↓2	18
20	Frances	164	↓2	19
21	Martha	157	↑1	24
22	Lois	156	↑4	26
23	Carolyn	148	↑1	23
24	Donna	148	↑4	22
25	Janice	146	↑22	31
26	Wanda	145	↓7	56
27	Delores	143	↑14	58
28	Ruby	140	↑1	51
29	Joyce	139	↓4	12
30	Jo	137	–	72
31	Mildred	134	↑4	40
32	Alice	133	↓9	27
33	Jean	127	–	20
34	Joan	123	↓13	7
35	Wilma	117	↑7	78
36	Loretta	113	↓4	70
37	Evelyn	110	↓10	34
38	Charlotte	108	↑5	61
39	Joann	107	↓5	55
40	Patsy	103	↑5	52
41	Sylvia	97	new	53
42	Thelma	97	↓4	74
43	Edna	95	new	71
44	Eleanor	92	new	47
45	Rose	92	↓1	37
46	Shelby	92	new	>100
47	Gloria	90	new	32
48	Bonnie	88	↓12	65
49	Hazel	88	↓3	96
50	Patty	86	↓13	>100

Boys
Rank	Name	Babies	vs 1935	US rank
1	James	1,287	–	2
2	Robert	1,041	–	1
3	William	842	–	4
4	Charles	800	–	6
5	John	727	–	3
6	Donald	549	–	7
7	Richard	413	–	5
8	David	330	↑3	10
9	Thomas	326	↑1	8
10	George	299	↓1	9
11	Paul	299	↓3	15
12	Ronald	252	↑1	12
13	Kenneth	248	↑1	14
14	Harold	244	↑1	21
15	Bobby	222	↑2	24
16	Jack	219	–	20
17	Joseph	214	↑1	11
18	Billy	205	↓6	22
19	Franklin	191	↑2	64
20	Edward	185	–	13
21	Carl	181	↓2	27
22	Ralph	165	↑3	31
23	Harry	163	↓1	39
24	Raymond	158	↓1	17
25	Jackie	154	↑8	>100
26	Jerry	145	↑3	18
27	Roy	144	↑3	42
28	Frank	139	↓1	16
29	Larry	128	↑8	25
30	Joe	126	↓6	23
31	Walter	124	↑1	26
32	Eugene	121	↓4	29
33	Howard	120	↓7	40
34	Earl	114	↓3	47
35	Clarence	101	–	52
36	Gerald	94	↑8	19
37	Lawrence	93	↑2	37
38	Fred	90	↑2	36
39	Jimmy	89	↓1	46
40	Ernest	88	↑9	55
41	Gary	88	↑7	38
42	Ray	81	↓8	65
43	Russell	80	new	69
44	Bernard	79	new	68
45	Arthur	78	↓4	30
46	Henry	78	↓4	28
47	Samuel	78	new	67
48	Albert	76	↓5	34
49	Johnny	73	new	72
50	Gene	72	new	66

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