Most popular baby names of 1902

Looking at the baby name rankings from 1901 to 1902, there's remarkable consistency in American naming preferences. The top three names for both boys and girls remained completely stable across these years. Mary, Helen, and Anna continued their reign as the most popular girls' names, while John, William, and James held firmly as the top three choices for boys. This stability suggests parents during this period valued traditional naming practices and weren't influenced by rapid trends.

Among the top 10 girls' names in 1902, there was some subtle movement. Alice climbed from 12th position in 1901 to 10th in 1902, demonstrating growing popularity. Dorothy made an impressive jump, rising from 22nd place to 15th, positioning it to potentially enter the top 10 in coming years. The traditional favorites Mary, Helen, Anna, Margaret, Ruth, Elizabeth, Florence, Marie, and Ethel maintained their strong presence in the top positions, with Marie moving up one spot from 7th to 8th.

The boys' top 10 names in 1902 showed similar stability with a few minor shifts. Robert moved up one position to 6th place, while Joseph dropped slightly from 6th to 7th. The classic masculine names John, William, James, George, Charles, Robert, Joseph, Frank, Edward, and Henry continued to dominate American culture. These strong, traditional names reflected the values of the early 20th century American families, with biblical names and royal names maintaining their longstanding popularity.

Looking at broader patterns across both years, girls' names showed a preference for feminine endings, with many top names ending in "-a" (Anna), "-ie" (Marie), or "-y" (Mary). Boys' names tended toward strong consonant endings and biblical origins. Traditional English and biblical names dominated both lists, reflecting America's cultural heritage. Interestingly, while some names like Dorothy were rising quickly for girls, the overall naming patterns remained conservative. Names with long histories in English-speaking countries continued to be favored over newer innovations, suggesting parents in this era valued tradition and family connections when naming their children.

Top baby names of 1902