Top baby names in North Carolina, 1940
Recorded as girls
| Rank | Name | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary | 2,282 |
| 2 | Betty | 1,372 |
| 3 | Barbara | 1,151 |
| 4 | Shirley | 952 |
| 5 | Linda | 730 |
| 6 | Dorothy | 702 |
| 7 | Nancy | 692 |
| 8 | Patricia | 691 |
| 9 | Carolyn | 602 |
| 10 | Margaret | 590 |
| 11 | Peggy | 569 |
| 12 | Annie | 554 |
| 13 | Joyce | 538 |
| 14 | Martha | 515 |
| 15 | Doris | 512 |
| 16 | Frances | 449 |
| 17 | Helen | 447 |
| 18 | Elizabeth | 422 |
| 19 | Brenda | 409 |
| 20 | Alice | 394 |
| 21 | Judy | 373 |
| 22 | Virginia | 367 |
| 23 | Sarah | 336 |
| 24 | Ruby | 302 |
| 25 | Judith | 288 |
| 26 | Sylvia | 283 |
| 27 | Mildred | 260 |
| 28 | Rebecca | 259 |
| 29 | Ruth | 250 |
| 30 | Phyllis | 247 |
| 31 | Edna | 245 |
| 31 | Jean | 245 |
| 33 | Janice | 244 |
| 34 | Evelyn | 229 |
| 35 | Carol | 223 |
| 36 | Geraldine | 215 |
| 37 | Sandra | 213 |
| 38 | Lois | 212 |
| 39 | Patsy | 210 |
| 40 | Gloria | 208 |
| 41 | Ann | 204 |
| 42 | Emma | 193 |
| 43 | Hazel | 177 |
| 44 | Clara | 173 |
| 45 | Edith | 169 |
| 45 | Norma | 169 |
| 47 | Julia | 168 |
| 48 | Jo | 166 |
| 49 | Lillie | 160 |
| 49 | Rosa | 160 |
Recorded as boys
| Rank | Name | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | James | 3,063 |
| 2 | William | 1,903 |
| 3 | Robert | 1,531 |
| 4 | John | 1,458 |
| 5 | Charles | 1,260 |
| 6 | Jerry | 746 |
| 7 | Thomas | 725 |
| 8 | Bobby | 722 |
| 9 | David | 693 |
| 10 | George | 657 |
| 11 | Larry | 568 |
| 12 | Richard | 564 |
| 13 | Billy | 549 |
| 14 | Donald | 543 |
| 15 | Willie | 534 |
| 16 | Joseph | 467 |
| 17 | Kenneth | 428 |
| 18 | Jimmy | 369 |
| 19 | Harold | 363 |
| 20 | Walter | 360 |
| 21 | Henry | 353 |
| 22 | Paul | 350 |
| 23 | Johnny | 335 |
| 24 | Edward | 330 |
| 25 | Joe | 329 |
| 26 | Roy | 276 |
| 27 | Ronald | 272 |
| 28 | Frank | 241 |
| 29 | Ralph | 226 |
| 30 | Wayne | 221 |
| 31 | Clarence | 213 |
| 32 | Carl | 209 |
| 33 | Charlie | 206 |
| 34 | Samuel | 197 |
| 35 | Jack | 195 |
| 36 | Tommy | 183 |
| 37 | Howard | 182 |
| 38 | Fred | 181 |
| 39 | Earl | 180 |
| 40 | Ernest | 170 |
| 41 | Roger | 169 |
| 42 | Jesse | 168 |
| 43 | Melvin | 167 |
| 44 | Raymond | 166 |
| 45 | Eugene | 164 |
| 46 | Arthur | 160 |
| 47 | Albert | 155 |
| 47 | Gerald | 155 |
| 49 | Gene | 151 |
| 50 | Franklin | 148 |