Most popular baby names of 1890
Top 100 boys & girls in 1890 (decade snapshot). Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
In 1890, the most popular US baby name for girls was Mary (12,078 babies) and for boys was John (8,502 babies), according to the Social Security Administration. The top five girl names were Mary, Anna, Elizabeth, Margaret, Emma; the top five boy names were John, William, James, George, Charles. The full top 100 for each sex, with birth counts, is below.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.
Top 100 girl names, 1890
| # | Name | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary | 12,078 |
| 2 | Anna | 5,233 |
| 3 | Elizabeth | 3,112 |
| 4 | Margaret | 3,100 |
| 5 | Emma | 2,980 |
| 6 | Florence | 2,744 |
| 7 | Ethel | 2,718 |
| 8 | Minnie | 2,650 |
| 9 | Clara | 2,496 |
| 10 | Bertha | 2,388 |
| 11 | Bessie | 2,370 |
| 12 | Helen | 2,312 |
| 13 | Grace | 2,278 |
| 14 | Alice | 2,271 |
| 15 | Annie | 2,220 |
| 16 | Ida | 2,178 |
| 17 | Mabel | 2,058 |
| 18 | Edna | 1,973 |
| 19 | Lillian | 1,862 |
| 20 | Nellie | 1,821 |
| 21 | Sarah | 1,786 |
| 22 | Martha | 1,784 |
| 23 | Ella | 1,758 |
| 24 | Pearl | 1,741 |
| 25 | Rose | 1,725 |
| 26 | Gertrude | 1,713 |
| 27 | Laura | 1,634 |
| 28 | Marie | 1,563 |
| 29 | Carrie | 1,510 |
| 30 | Edith | 1,493 |
| 31 | Louise | 1,472 |
| 32 | Eva | 1,436 |
| 33 | Frances | 1,416 |
| 34 | Myrtle | 1,406 |
| 35 | Lillie | 1,390 |
| 36 | Cora | 1,386 |
| 37 | Hazel | 1,366 |
| 38 | Hattie | 1,363 |
| 39 | Maude | 1,359 |
| 40 | Julia | 1,275 |
| 41 | Jennie | 1,259 |
| 42 | Mattie | 1,256 |
| 43 | Jessie | 1,250 |
| 44 | Catherine | 1,232 |
| 45 | Elsie | 1,220 |
| 46 | Ruth | 1,195 |
| 47 | Lena | 1,137 |
| 48 | Lula | 1,121 |
| 49 | Josephine | 1,118 |
| 50 | Agnes | 1,095 |
| 51 | Ada | 1,074 |
| 52 | Fannie | 1,005 |
| 53 | Lucy | 973 |
| 54 | Mamie | 967 |
| 55 | Blanche | 953 |
| 56 | Stella | 924 |
| 57 | Alma | 922 |
| 58 | Mae | 920 |
| 59 | Katherine | 900 |
| 60 | Irene | 893 |
| 61 | Maggie | 891 |
| 62 | Dora | 883 |
| 63 | Nora | 835 |
| 64 | Rosa | 770 |
| 65 | May | 751 |
| 66 | Effie | 717 |
| 67 | Nettie | 707 |
| 68 | Viola | 697 |
| 69 | Sadie | 680 |
| 70 | Ellen | 659 |
| 71 | Mildred | 635 |
| 72 | Della | 631 |
| 73 | Susie | 630 |
| 74 | Lizzie | 620 |
| 75 | Esther | 619 |
| 76 | Daisy | 588 |
| 77 | Willie | 578 |
| 78 | Lydia | 576 |
| 79 | Beulah | 573 |
| 80 | Sallie | 571 |
| 81 | Ruby | 540 |
| 82 | Gladys | 525 |
| 83 | Georgia | 513 |
| 84 | Nancy | 512 |
| 85 | Flora | 510 |
| 86 | Emily | 509 |
| 87 | Katie | 509 |
| 88 | Lottie | 502 |
| 89 | Olive | 491 |
| 90 | Pauline | 475 |
| 91 | Kathryn | 474 |
| 92 | Addie | 468 |
| 93 | Dorothy | 458 |
| 94 | Caroline | 455 |
| 95 | Etta | 452 |
| 96 | Marguerite | 442 |
| 97 | Maud | 439 |
| 98 | Beatrice | 417 |
| 99 | Charlotte | 417 |
| 100 | Virginia | 405 |
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.
Top 100 boy names, 1890
| # | Name | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | John | 8,502 |
| 2 | William | 7,494 |
| 3 | James | 5,097 |
| 4 | George | 4,458 |
| 5 | Charles | 4,061 |
| 6 | Frank | 3,078 |
| 7 | Joseph | 2,670 |
| 8 | Robert | 2,541 |
| 9 | Henry | 2,349 |
| 10 | Harry | 2,345 |
| 11 | Edward | 2,282 |
| 12 | Thomas | 2,200 |
| 13 | Walter | 1,905 |
| 14 | Arthur | 1,610 |
| 15 | Fred | 1,506 |
| 16 | Albert | 1,417 |
| 17 | Clarence | 1,018 |
| 18 | Roy | 941 |
| 19 | Louis | 860 |
| 20 | Samuel | 815 |
| 21 | Charlie | 797 |
| 22 | Ernest | 774 |
| 23 | Willie | 758 |
| 24 | Earl | 744 |
| 25 | Richard | 743 |
| 26 | David | 731 |
| 27 | Carl | 693 |
| 28 | Joe | 682 |
| 29 | Oscar | 628 |
| 30 | Will | 613 |
| 31 | Paul | 607 |
| 32 | Ralph | 587 |
| 33 | Jesse | 576 |
| 34 | Andrew | 575 |
| 35 | Alfred | 549 |
| 36 | Raymond | 546 |
| 37 | Benjamin | 537 |
| 38 | Elmer | 528 |
| 39 | Daniel | 505 |
| 40 | Howard | 501 |
| 41 | Sam | 489 |
| 42 | Herbert | 467 |
| 43 | Frederick | 410 |
| 44 | Lee | 410 |
| 45 | Peter | 410 |
| 46 | Eugene | 408 |
| 47 | Harold | 408 |
| 48 | Michael | 394 |
| 49 | Leo | 393 |
| 50 | Herman | 382 |
| 51 | Lewis | 375 |
| 52 | Lawrence | 372 |
| 53 | Jack | 368 |
| 54 | Ben | 363 |
| 55 | Francis | 363 |
| 56 | Ray | 349 |
| 57 | Claude | 347 |
| 58 | Martin | 347 |
| 59 | Tom | 347 |
| 60 | Floyd | 341 |
| 61 | Edgar | 338 |
| 62 | Jim | 336 |
| 63 | Edwin | 323 |
| 64 | Clyde | 317 |
| 65 | Harvey | 296 |
| 66 | Jacob | 290 |
| 67 | Leonard | 275 |
| 68 | Otto | 267 |
| 69 | Chester | 263 |
| 70 | Ed | 262 |
| 71 | Luther | 253 |
| 72 | Guy | 249 |
| 73 | Jessie | 241 |
| 74 | Leroy | 236 |
| 75 | Patrick | 227 |
| 76 | Lester | 226 |
| 77 | Homer | 223 |
| 78 | Stanley | 223 |
| 79 | Archie | 221 |
| 80 | Hugh | 219 |
| 81 | Oliver | 218 |
| 82 | Ira | 209 |
| 83 | Clifford | 207 |
| 84 | August | 206 |
| 85 | Alexander | 202 |
| 86 | Eddie | 197 |
| 87 | Leon | 197 |
| 88 | Philip | 192 |
| 89 | Theodore | 190 |
| 90 | Allen | 189 |
| 91 | Anthony | 189 |
| 92 | Isaac | 187 |
| 93 | Charley | 183 |
| 94 | Lloyd | 182 |
| 95 | Russell | 182 |
| 96 | Leslie | 181 |
| 97 | Bert | 180 |
| 98 | Bernard | 178 |
| 99 | Grover | 177 |
| 100 | Sidney | 176 |
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names. Data as of SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026.
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Frequently asked questions
What were the most popular baby names in 1890?
In 1890, the most popular US girl name was Mary (12,078 babies) and the most popular boy name was John (8,502 babies), per the Social Security Administration. The top five girls were Mary, Anna, Elizabeth, Margaret, Emma; the top five boys were John, William, James, George, Charles.
How many babies got the #1 name in 1890?
In 1890, Mary was given to 12,078 baby girls and John to 8,502 baby boys, the highest counts that year in SSA national data.
Source
U.S. Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, national data for 1890. SSA national data through 2025, state data through 2025, retrieved June 2026. Public domain (U.S. Government). See our methodology.
Last updated: 2026-06-22