Born in 1943 · Silent Generation
Baby names of 1943
The Social Security name files, which cover every name given to at least 5 babies, list 2,822,590 babies born in 1943: 1,395,293 girls and 1,427,297 boys. Mary and James were the most popular names, and 29.3% of all babies got a top-10 name, compared with 28.3% ten years later. The name most tied to 1943 is Judith: among girls, it was 6.3× as common that year as in the decades around it.
Quick facts
- Generation
- Silent Generation
- Born 1928–1945
- Babies on record
- 2,822,590
- 1,395,293 girls · 1,427,297 boys
- Different names
- 5,367
- for girls, plus 4,040 for boys (5+ babies each)
- Top-10 names
- 29.3%
- of babies got one · girls 24.4%, boys 34.1%
Top 10 names of 1943
- Mary was already the #1 name for girls in 1935 and stayed there through 1946.
- James was the #1 name for boys every year from 1940 to 1952.
How many babies got a top-10 name?
In 1943, 29.3% of babies were given one of that year's 10 most popular names. Across all years, that share fell from 29.0% in 1935 to 7.5% in 2025.
Names that sound like 1943
These names were far more common in 1943 than in the decades around it: the multiplier compares each name's share of 1943 babies with its average share 6–25 years before and after.
| Name | Sex | Rank | Vs. nearby |
|---|---|---|---|
| Judith | Girl | #7 | 6.3× |
| Sharron | Girl | #226 | 6.1× |
| Carole | Girl | #42 | 5.5× |
| Saundra | Girl | #256 | 4.7× |
| Judy | Girl | #13 | 4.6× |
| Penelope | Girl | #276 | 3.4× |
| Pat | Girl | #145 | 3.4× |
| Carolyn | Girl | #11 | 3.2× |
| Carol | Girl | #5 | 3.2× |
| Sharon | Girl | #8 | 3.1× |
Names that peaked in 1943
Each of these reached its highest share of US babies in 1943, the high point in records going back to 1880. Rank is for 1943.
| Name | Sex | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Ronald | Boy | #9 |
| Sharon | Girl | #8 |
| Eileen | Girl | #68 |
| Maryann | Girl | #135 |
| Sharron | Girl | #226 |
| Roseann | Girl | #294 |
| Kaye | Girl | #322 |
| Edwina | Girl | #379 |
| Ronny | Boy | #322 |
| Carolee | Girl | #454 |
New to the top 1,000 in 1943
Names that made the national top 1,000 for the first time in 1943 (records go back to 1880).
Where are they now?
Top-100 names of 1943 that have since dropped out of the top 1,000. Ranks are for 1943 and 2025.
Girls
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data