Baby name trends come and go, but many choices remain popular for decades and even centuries. Luckily, if you’re interested in examining historical patterns, the Social Security Administration in the US offers lists of the top baby names of every decade going back to the 1880s.
Looking back to the 1890s, there are many timeless names on the top 20 lists, like Emma and Elizabeth for girls and William and James for boys. However, it’s also clear that tastes have changed, as once-popular names like Bertha, Clarence, Earl and Bessie are scarcely seen on birth certificates today.
See for yourself! Below, find the 50 most popular names for boys and girls born in the U.S. from 1890 to 1899.
Girls
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Mary
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Anna
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Margaret
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Helen
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Elizabeth
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Ruth
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Florence
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Ethel
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Emma
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Marie
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Clara
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Bertha
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Minnie
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Bessie
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Alice
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Lillian
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Edna
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Grace
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Annie
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Mabel
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Ida
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Rose
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Hazel
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Gertrude
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Martha
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Pearl
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Frances
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Myrtle
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Edith
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Nellie
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Sarah
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Ella
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Eva
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Laura
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Elsie
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Louise
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Esther
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Catherine
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Agnes
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Carrie
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Lillie
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Mildred
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Gladys
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Irene
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Julia
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Hattie
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Cora
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Lena
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Josephine
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Mattie
Boys
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John
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William
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James
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George
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Charles
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Joseph
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Frank
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Robert
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Edward
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Henry
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Harry
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Thomas
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Walter
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Arthur
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Fred
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Albert
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Clarence
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Willie
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Roy
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Louis
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Earl
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Paul
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Carl
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Ernest
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Samuel
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Richard
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Raymond
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Joe
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David
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Charlie
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Harold
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Ralph
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Howard
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Andrew
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Herbert
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Elmer
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Oscar
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Jesse
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Alfred
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Will
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Daniel
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Sam
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Leo
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Jack
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Lawrence
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Francis
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Benjamin
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Lee
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Eugene
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Herman