Top UK babies' names from the 1920s
| Rank | Girls' names | Boys' names |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Margaret (2) | John (1) |
| 2 | Mary (1) | William (2) |
| 3 | Joan (29) | George (3) |
| 4 | Joyce (-) | James (5) |
| 5 | Dorothy (4) | Thomas (4) |
| 6 | Kathleen (5) | Ronald (21) |
| 7 | Doris (3) | Kenneth (33) |
| 8 | Irene (21) | Robert (10) |
| 9 | Elizabeth (9) | Arthur (6) |
| 10 | Eileen (24) | Frederick (7) |
Source: Office for National Statistics
The table shows the top ten girls' and boys' names from 1924. The figures in brackets are the position of the name in 1914.
Girls' names
Despite the huge upheaval of the First World War, there was very little change between girls' names popular in 1924 and those popular in 1914. Perhaps it was because people wanted to hang onto the past.
Margaret and Mary were still the most popular names. Six out of the 1924 top ten names were in the 1914 list.
There were some new names. Joyce did not figure at all in 1914. Although the other new top ten names, Joan, Irene and Eileen, were all gaining popularity in 1914.
How did girls' names in the UK differ from those in the USA?
The top ten baby girl names in the USA in the 1930s were (UK position in brackets):
- Mary (2)
- Dorothy (5)
- Helen (-)
- Betty (11)
- Margaret (1)
- Ruth (55)
- Virginia (-)
- Doris (7)
- Mildred (85)
- Frances (46)
There is a reasonable correlation between US and UK girls' names. Mary, Margaret, Dorothy and Doris are on both lists. Betty is just out of the UK top ten. Virginia, Mildred, Helen and Frances were much more popular in the US.
UK names less popular in the US were Joan (USA 60), Joyce (USA 61), Kathleen (USA 85), Irene (USA 19) and Eileen (USA 99)
Boys' names
The choice of boys' names is less prone to fashion than girls' names. In 1924 eight of the top ten names were in the 1914 top ten. The top three names did not change at all. In the top five only Thomas and James changed places.
New to the top ten were Kenneth and Ronald. Both declined in popularity in the following decades.
How did boys' names in the UK differ from in the USA?
The top ten baby boy names in the USA were (UK position in brackets):
- Robert (8)
- John (1)
- James (4)
- William (2)
- Charles (14)
- George (3)
- Joseph (16)
- Richard (32)
- Edward (12)
- Donald (29)
UK names less popular in the US were: Ronald (USA 93) and Frederick (USA 63). Fred was at 33 in the US.
Thomas (USA 11), Kenneth (USA 19) and Arthur (USA 20) had some following in the US.
References
The data for the US names was provided online by the United States Social Security Administration
Read more:
- Top UK babies' names in the 1930s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1940s
- Top USA babies' names in the 1950s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1950s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1960s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1970s
- Top UK babies' names in the 1980s
By Steven Braggs, February 2022
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