Real names given to babies in the US from 1940 to 1949. The top names were Mary for girls and James for boys.
Here are 12 names to start. Change the options and press Generate 1940s names for more.
Counts include names given to at least five babies of the same sex in a year. Early decades undercount births, because many people born before 1937 never applied for a Social Security number.
| Rank | Name | Babies | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Mary | 640,070 | 44.19 per 1,000 |
| #2 | Linda | 531,658 | 36.7 per 1,000 |
| #3 | Barbara | 425,267 | 29.36 per 1,000 |
| #4 | Patricia | 411,412 | 28.4 per 1,000 |
| #5 | Carol | 292,330 | 20.18 per 1,000 |
| #6 | Sandra | 265,536 | 18.33 per 1,000 |
| #7 | Nancy | 252,058 | 17.4 per 1,000 |
| #8 | Sharon | 221,236 | 15.27 per 1,000 |
| #9 | Judith | 218,035 | 15.05 per 1,000 |
| #10 | Susan | 212,014 | 14.64 per 1,000 |
| #11 | Betty | 194,622 | 13.44 per 1,000 |
| #12 | Carolyn | 181,855 | 12.55 per 1,000 |
| #13 | Margaret | 173,025 | 11.95 per 1,000 |
| #14 | Shirley | 171,780 | 11.86 per 1,000 |
| #15 | Judy | 167,718 | 11.58 per 1,000 |
| #16 | Karen | 167,699 | 11.58 per 1,000 |
| #17 | Donna | 165,523 | 11.43 per 1,000 |
| #18 | Kathleen | 152,981 | 10.56 per 1,000 |
| #19 | Joyce | 151,493 | 10.46 per 1,000 |
| #20 | Dorothy | 132,255 | 9.13 per 1,000 |
| #21 | Janet | 130,754 | 9.03 per 1,000 |
| #22 | Diane | 122,877 | 8.48 per 1,000 |
| #23 | Janice | 118,892 | 8.21 per 1,000 |
| #24 | Joan | 117,708 | 8.13 per 1,000 |
| #25 | Elizabeth | 116,551 | 8.05 per 1,000 |
| Rank | Name | Babies | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | James | 795,767 | 53.46 per 1,000 |
| #2 | Robert | 758,115 | 50.93 per 1,000 |
| #3 | John | 711,600 | 47.8 per 1,000 |
| #4 | William | 556,469 | 37.38 per 1,000 |
| #5 | Richard | 477,472 | 32.07 per 1,000 |
| #6 | David | 426,365 | 28.64 per 1,000 |
| #7 | Charles | 361,760 | 24.3 per 1,000 |
| #8 | Thomas | 350,771 | 23.56 per 1,000 |
| #9 | Michael | 336,564 | 22.61 per 1,000 |
| #10 | Ronald | 282,478 | 18.98 per 1,000 |
| #11 | Larry | 255,907 | 17.19 per 1,000 |
| #12 | Donald | 247,829 | 16.65 per 1,000 |
| #13 | Joseph | 230,281 | 15.47 per 1,000 |
| #14 | Gary | 217,769 | 14.63 per 1,000 |
| #15 | George | 209,005 | 14.04 per 1,000 |
| #16 | Kenneth | 198,551 | 13.34 per 1,000 |
| #17 | Paul | 183,356 | 12.32 per 1,000 |
| #18 | Edward | 174,798 | 11.74 per 1,000 |
| #19 | Jerry | 167,250 | 11.23 per 1,000 |
| #20 | Dennis | 162,113 | 10.89 per 1,000 |
| #21 | Frank | 119,420 | 8.02 per 1,000 |
| #22 | Daniel | 112,776 | 7.58 per 1,000 |
| #23 | Raymond | 109,070 | 7.33 per 1,000 |
| #24 | Roger | 107,597 | 7.23 per 1,000 |
| #25 | Stephen | 106,810 | 7.17 per 1,000 |
Compared with the decade before, among names in the top 300 of the 1940s.
Mary, Linda and Barbara for girls; James, Robert and John for boys.
From the US Social Security Administration's national baby-name records, which go back to 1880.
Yes. Names are free to use for pets, stories, games, products and anything else. Real names come from public government records; fantasy names are generated, so you do not need permission to use them.