Top 100 History: Boys' 1920s

Today we learn about the popular boys' names of exactly a century ago.

Changes

1920

Left: Eddie, Sidney, Morris, Woodrow

Entered: Homer, Gilbert, Allen, Wallace

1921

Left: Gilbert, Homer, Johnnie

Entered: Roger, Virgil, Dale

1922

Left: Stephen, Wilbur

Entered: Gilbert, Billy

1923

Left: Gilbert, Claude

Entered: Bill, Calvin

1924

Left: Everett, Virgil

Entered: Gilbert, Roland

1925

Left: Gilbert

Entered: Johnnie

1926

Left: Johnnie, Oscar, Roland, Edgar

Entered: Jerry, Don, Gene, Ronald

1927

Left: Benjamin, Sam, Willard

Entered: Bob, Gilbert, Bobby

1928

Left: Wallace

Entered: Jimmie

1929

Left: Cecil, Calvin

Entered: Curtis, Douglas

Movement

  • Roger, Dale, Billy, Bill, Jerry, Don, Gene, Ronald, Bob, Bobby, Jimmie, Curtis, and Douglas became popular for the first time. 
  • Eddie, Sidney, Morris, Woodrow, Stephen, Wilbur, Claude, Everett, Virgil, Johnnie, Oscar, Edgar, Benjamin, Sam, Willard, and Cecil left the top 100. 
  • Gilbert returned to the top 100 after a hiatus.
  • Homer entered the top 100 before leaving again. 
  • Richard and Donald entered the top 10. 
  • Thomas and Frank left the top 10.
  • Kenneth, Jack, and Eugene entered the top 20. 
  • David returned to the top 20. 
  • Henry, Arthur, Albert, and Harry left the top 20. 
  • Billy, Gerald, Ronald, Marvin, Bobby, Daniel, and Melvin entered the top 50. 
  • Bernard, Samuel, Michael, Russell, Andrew, Leo, and Elmer left the top 50. 

Trends

  • Classic names declined (Stephen, Oscar, Benjamin).
  • Names ending in "er" remained stylish (Roger, Elmer, Peter, Chester, Arthur, Walter, Lester, etc.)
  • Surname-names began to decline (Gilbert, Morris, Woodrow, Everett, Willard).
  • Names ending in "vin" were still common (Marvin, Alvin, Melvin). 
  • "W" names declined (Woodrow, Wilbur, Willard). 
  • A new wave of nickname-names came in (Billy, Bill, Jerry, Don, Gene, Bob, Bobby, Jimmie). 
  • Names ending in "ald" became stylish (Ronald, Donald, Gerald). 
What was the most interesting change in boys' names from the 1920s?

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