Birth year roster
Top names in 1939
The names most likely to appear on 1939 birth certificates, ranked by SSA records.
Mary and Robert led the 1939 baby-name charts, a pair that captures the naming culture of mid-century America — a timeless classic that had dominated since the 1880s and Robert, a perennial powerhouse that would anchor the decade. The full top 25 below reveals which names defined the 1939 classroom and how many have since faded or endured.
Girls
- #1Mary54,900
- #2Barbara37,257
- #3Patricia29,701
- #4Betty23,639
- #5Shirley20,447
- #6Carol20,166
- #7Nancy19,723
- #8Judith16,625
- #9Dorothy15,169
- #10Margaret14,949
- #11Joan14,143
- #12Joyce13,394
- #13Sandra11,970
- #14Carolyn11,290
- #15Linda10,713
- #16Helen10,420
- #17Janet10,120
- #18Elizabeth9,709
- #19Marilyn9,538
- #20Donna9,371
- #21Virginia9,227
- #22Ruth9,062
- #23Sharon9,014
- #24Janice8,778
- #25Beverly8,706
Boys
- #1Robert59,666
- #2James59,636
- #3John51,025
- #4William42,071
- #5Richard35,386
- #6Charles30,789
- #7David25,360
- #8Donald24,056
- #9Thomas22,129
- #10Ronald19,837
- #11George17,886
- #12Joseph17,722
- #13Kenneth14,715
- #14Larry14,532
- #15Edward14,427
- #16Jerry13,729
- #17Paul13,337
- #18Michael10,828
- #19Gerald10,057
- #20Frank9,991
- #21Gary9,684
- #22Raymond9,252
- #23Harold8,299
- #24Billy7,474
- #25Walter7,322