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The most popular baby names of 1938

SSA recorded 2,212,603 births in 1938 across all reported names — 1,103,456 girls and 1,109,147 boys.

Top 100 girls' names in 1938

Rank, births, and the change in rank against 1937.
#NameBirthsvs 1937
1 Mary 56,225 —
2 Barbara 39,277 —
3 Patricia 27,560 —
4 Betty 25,506 +1
5 Shirley 23,766 -1
6 Carol 19,421 —
7 Nancy 18,951 —
8 Dorothy 16,358 —
9 Margaret 15,330 +1
10 Joan 14,303 -1
11 Joyce 12,698 —
12 Judith 10,878 +22
13 Helen 10,837 -1
14 Sandra 10,806 +12
15 Carolyn 10,586 +5
16 Janet 9,870 +2
17 Elizabeth 9,803 —
18 Beverly 9,770 -4
19 Marilyn 9,745 -6
20 Donna 9,693 +1
21 Ruth 9,303 -6
22 Virginia 9,269 -6
23 Frances 8,921 -4
24 Janice 8,711 +1
25 Doris 8,603 -3
26 Martha 8,578 -2
27 Jean 7,764 -4
28 Phyllis 7,644 -1
29 Alice 7,490 -1
30 Sharon 7,244 +11
31 Linda 7,047 +18
32 Ann 6,990 -2
33 Lois 6,502 -4
34 Norma 6,368 -1
35 Peggy 6,343 -4
36 Gloria 6,299 -4
37 Marie 5,958 -2
38 Evelyn 5,688 -2
39 Rose 5,292 -1
40 Anna 5,145 -1
41 Judy 4,992 +49
42 Elaine 4,835 +3
43 Dolores 4,809 -6
44 Jane 4,786 -2
45 Geraldine 4,652 -1
46 Carole 4,616 +10
47 Annie 4,562 -1
48 Catherine 4,525 -1
49 Wanda 4,513 +6
50 Karen 4,508 +63
51 Marlene 4,473 -11
52 Mildred 4,441 -9
53 Marjorie 4,318 +4
54 Sally 4,278 +5
55 Patsy 4,260 -1
56 Sylvia 4,259 -6
57 Joanne 4,250 -6
58 Kathleen 4,228 +3
59 Louise 4,069 -11
60 Eleanor 4,049 -7
61 Ruby 3,942 -9
62 Loretta 3,913 +1
63 Arlene 3,894 -3
64 Diane 3,827 +12
65 Bonnie 3,773 -1
66 Rosalie 3,758 +113
67 Sarah 3,749 -2
68 Joann 3,710 -10
69 Jacqueline 3,633 +1
70 Charlotte 3,626 -3
71 Susan 3,555 +26
72 Irene 3,554 -10
73 Roberta 3,547 -7
74 Rita 3,357 -5
75 Delores 3,322 -7
76 Darlene 3,321 -4
77 Gail 3,214 +22
78 Jo 3,172 -5
79 June 3,141 -8
80 Juanita 3,129 -5
81 Kay 3,114 -2
82 Edna 3,080 -8
83 Josephine 2,978 -1
84 Anne 2,887 +8
85 Wilma 2,871 -5
86 Thelma 2,866 -8
87 Audrey 2,844 -2
88 Lillian 2,825 -4
89 Ellen 2,805 +13
89 Florence 2,805 -8
91 Jeanette 2,802 -1
92 Theresa 2,763 +3
93 Lorraine 2,740 -10
94 Ethel 2,726 -6
95 Rosemary 2,681 +15
96 Emma 2,670 -7
97 Pauline 2,666 -10
98 Clara 2,662 +2
99 Anita 2,636 -6
100 Grace 2,609 -6

Top 100 boys' names in 1938

Rank, births, and the change in rank against 1937.
#NameBirthsvs 1937
1 Robert 62,271 —
2 James 59,102 —
3 John 50,517 —
4 William 42,433 —
5 Richard 34,385 —
6 Charles 31,151 —
7 Donald 26,677 —
8 David 22,994 —
9 Thomas 21,381 —
10 Ronald 20,295 +1
11 George 18,435 -1
12 Joseph 17,742 —
13 Edward 14,551 —
14 Kenneth 14,399 —
15 Paul 13,360 —
16 Larry 12,394 —
17 Jerry 12,172 —
18 Frank 10,260 —
19 Gerald 9,972 +1
20 Raymond 9,725 -1
21 Michael 9,077 +6
22 Gary 8,861 +7
23 Harold 8,563 -2
24 Billy 8,253 -2
25 Jack 8,144 -2
26 Walter 7,560 —
27 Bobby 7,498 -3
28 Joe 7,438 -4
29 Carl 6,849 -1
30 Henry 6,557 —
31 Roger 6,551 +5
32 Arthur 6,525 -1
33 Eugene 6,112 —
34 Willie 6,081 -2
35 Ralph 6,013 -1
36 Lawrence 5,873 +2
37 Albert 5,796 —
38 Fred 5,768 -3
39 Daniel 5,583 —
40 Wayne 5,226 +4
41 Roy 5,041 -1
42 Howard 5,018 —
43 Norman 4,953 —
44 Harry 4,824 -3
45 Jimmy 4,730 —
46 Anthony 4,689 +1
47 Louis 4,390 -1
48 Peter 4,293 +4
49 Dennis 4,236 +14
50 Earl 4,007 -2
51 Francis 3,951 +4
52 Don 3,900 -1
52 Marvin 3,900 -3
54 Melvin 3,818 -4
55 Ernest 3,708 -2
56 Dale 3,690 +3
57 Leonard 3,670 +1
58 Clarence 3,639 -4
59 Stanley 3,544 -2
60 Douglas 3,508 +14
61 Leroy 3,491 -5
62 Samuel 3,243 +4
63 Johnny 3,197 +6
64 Philip 3,172 -2
65 Gene 3,149 -4
66 Bruce 3,127 +4
67 Bill 3,113 -3
68 Herbert 3,014 -3
69 Alfred 3,008 -9
70 Russell 2,950 -3
71 Frederick 2,935 -3
72 Ray 2,881 -1
73 Allen 2,834 +3
74 Stephen 2,726 +18
75 Bernard 2,715 -2
76 Jimmie 2,693 -4
77 Tommy 2,667 +7
78 Gordon 2,657 -3
79 Eddie 2,616 +4
80 Lee 2,575 -2
81 Jim 2,497 +1
82 Andrew 2,411 -3
83 Glenn 2,367 +5
84 Theodore 2,360 +2
85 Leon 2,355 —
86 Terry 2,336 +27
87 Martin 2,313 —
88 Patrick 2,292 +6
89 Clifford 2,277 +1
90 Edwin 2,250 -1
91 Alan 2,241 +12
92 Lloyd 2,215 -1
93 Jerome 2,209 +7
94 Bob 2,204 -13
95 Phillip 2,154 +3
96 Floyd 2,146 -16
97 Clyde 2,130 -4
98 Alvin 2,063 +1
99 Harvey 2,051 -4
100 Franklin 2,021 -23

Names that climbed fastest in 1938

Ranked by places gained against 1937, among names with at least 200 births in both years.

NameRank 1938Rank 1937Change
Brenda girls 244 423 +179
Rosalie girls 66 179 +113
Saundra girls 349 456 +107
Lynda girls 272 371 +99
Sonja girls 180 262 +82
Gwen girls 322 389 +67
Darryl boys 296 362 +66
Ilene girls 347 412 +65
Karen girls 50 113 +63
Bonita girls 335 398 +63
Lynne girls 258 309 +51
Dallas boys 219 270 +51
Deborah girls 308 358 +50
Judy girls 41 90 +49
Gretchen girls 285 334 +49

Names that fell fastest in 1938

NameRank 1938Rank 1937Change
Shelba girls 421 340 -81
Arline girls 344 264 -80
Dolly girls 442 376 -66
Effie girls 382 317 -65
Angeline girls 439 382 -57
Luella girls 392 339 -53
Virgie girls 417 364 -53
Irwin boys 368 317 -51
Rena girls 381 331 -50
Tommie girls 382 333 -49
Johnie boys 354 305 -49
Shirley boys 340 293 -47
Merle girls 415 370 -45
August boys 352 307 -45
Winnie girls 449 405 -44

Names that first appear in 1938

1938 is the earliest year these names clear the SSA reporting threshold of five births.

Names that peaked in 1938

For these names, 1938 is the single biggest year in the whole 1880–2025 record.