1940s Baby Names

7,630 names were given to children in the United States between 1940 and 1949, ranked below by how many.

A name's place is its total across those ten years. Names that appear in only some of the decade say so, because a name recorded once is a different fact from one recorded every year.

  • #6,713
    Ronita
    54 in the 1940s 9 of 10 years
  • #6,716
    Marylynne
    54 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,719
    Josetta
    54 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,720
    Mava
    54 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,721
    Beckey
    54 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,722
    Rubby
    54 in the 1940s 9 of 10 years
  • #6,725
    Sherin
    54 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,726
    Ermalinda
    54 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,728
    Vicie
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,731
    Lavella
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,732
    Maribelle
    53 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,733
    Marne
    53 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,735
    Kizzie
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,738
    Margart
    53 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,743
    Dorathea
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,744
    Inetta
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,745
    Vela
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,746
    Caralyn
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,747
    Threasa
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,749
    Neena
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,750
    Caro
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,752
    Avanell
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,755
    Lucillie
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,756
    Lanae
    53 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,757
    Bethann
    53 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,758
    Melvenia
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,760
    Darolyn
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,761
    Shirely
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,767
    Pressley
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,770
    Gaynel
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,775
    Jeneva
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,777
    Bonnetta
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,778
    Gwenith
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,779
    Dorann
    53 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,780
    Sydne
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,783
    Luane
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,787
    Rolinda
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,788
    Versa
    53 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,789
    Judeth
    52 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,791
    Shireen
    52 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,794
    Rosine
    52 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,795
    Pearlena
    52 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,798
    Cathlyn
    52 in the 1940s 6 of 10 years
  • #6,800
    Caretha
    52 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,801
    Gwendolyne
    52 in the 1940s 8 of 10 years
  • #6,802
    Ninette
    52 in the 1940s 5 of 10 years
  • #6,805
    Minette
    52 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years
  • #6,807
    Dominica
    52 in the 1940s 7 of 10 years

What Made a 1940s Name

Children in the United States were registered with it between 1940 and 1949. A name's position here is how many of them were.

Why Some Names Only Cover Part of the Decade

A name that appears in three of the ten years either arrived partway through or faded out — and either is more interesting than the total on its own. The statistics offices do not publish names given to very few children in a year, so a gap can also mean the count dropped below the threshold rather than to nothing.

Where to Go Next

Open any name to see its full curve — most of these have a hundred and forty years of it. Or compare the ends of the same measurement: the most popular names now and the rarest.