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Most popular baby names from the Gilded Historic period

Marking Twain coined the term "Gilded Age" to describe the period between the end of the Civil State of war and the turn of the side by side century, where tumultuous social and political changes were masked by impressive technological innovations and the prominence of the Usa on an international calibration. The fourth dimension was marked by the completion of the Transcontinental Railroad, which allowed Americans to traverse the country with relative ease and speed and even resettle in a different area if they chose to practice so.

The Gilded Age likewise marked the starting time of the Industrial Revolution, which sped up the rate of urbanization and saw more people working in factories than on farms for the start time in the country's history.

As these facets of culture shifted, so too did various trends associated with the time, including popular names. Many of the names popular in the Gilded Age followed the and then-chosen "hundred-year rule," which is the idea that the same names ascent and wane in popularity over 100 years. Every bit such, some of the most common babe names at the end of the 19th century were names that had simply resurfaced from the previous century.

Writer Edith Wharton, who was born in 1862 and died in 1937, was 1 of the first people to write about the Gilt Age, and the names she gave the characters in her novels greatly influenced the names that parents chose for her children. Some—like the name Bertha—became immensely popular, while other names she gave her characters largely existed only in the text of her novels, like Effie, Abner, Newland, and Agathon.

To decide the most pop babe names of the Aureate Historic period, Stacker used data from the Social Security Administration's Baby Names Database, which includes baby name popularity going dorsum to 1880.

Historians mostly associate the Gold Historic period with the 1870s through the 1890s, but for this story, we used data from 1880 to 1900 to rank Gilded Historic period baby names. Each slide as well includes the nearly pop and least popular years for each proper name (i.e. the years in which the most and least babies were given this name) and the proper name's rank in 2018, the almost recent twelvemonth for which data is available.

Read on to detect out which names were near fashionable at the turn of the century—some of which could exist making a reappearance today.

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#25. Girl: Gertrude

- Full Gilded Age babies with this name: 33,579 (Average: 1,599 born per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #23; 2,580 babies born)
- Least pop twelvemonth: 1880 (Rank: #25; 787 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #5,423 (23 babies built-in)

The proper name Gertrude has its roots in Federal republic of germany and means, "strength of a spear." Although the name peaked in popularity in the late 1800s and early 1900s, it actually has celebrated origins. Gertrude was a goddess in Norse mythology and was the name of Hamlet's mother in Shakespeare's "Hamlet." Gertrude peaked on the baby name list in the U.S. in 1900 at #23, during the era of writer Gertrude Stein and extra Gertrude Lawrence.

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#25. Male child: Ernest

- Total Gold Age babies with this name: xv,589 (Average: 742 built-in per year)
- Well-nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #30; ane,012 babies built-in)
- Least pop year: 1881 (Rank: #25; 571 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #976 (210 babies born)

Ernest was introduced in England by the German House of Hanover in the 18th century, but the name didn't become popular until after. Writer Oscar Wilde famously named ane of the characters Ernest in his 1895 play, "The Importance of Beingness Hostage." Although Ernest Hemingway's writing didn't permeate American civilisation until the 1900s, his parents probable seized on the resurgence of the name when he was born in 1899, simply a year earlier the name'south peak popularity.

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#24. Girl: Sarah

- Total Gilt Age babies with this name: 33,924 (Average: ane,615 born per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #37; two,055 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1881 (Rank: #12; 1,226 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #67 (3,734 babies built-in)

As a biblical name, Sarah has consistently been a common proper name for girls. In the Former Testament, Sarah was the wife of Abraham, although her proper noun was Sarai until God was said to take changed information technology when she was historic period 90. After the Protestant Reformation, Sarah became increasingly common in the Western world. French extra Sarah Bernhardt, who was built-in in 1844, as well helped to popularize the proper noun.

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#24. Boy: Richard

- Total Gilded Historic period babies with this proper name: 15,725 (Average: 749 born per yr)
- Nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #24; 1,141 babies born)
- Least pop twelvemonth: 1891 (Rank: #27; 609 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #187 (ii,119 babies born)

The name Richard means "strong ability," and it comes from two Germanic words: "ric" and "hard." Historically, the name is most commonly associated with Rex Richard I of England, who led the Tertiary Holy Cause of the 12th century. However, the proper noun Richard became popular in the early on 1900s thanks to a number of key sports figures, including Swedish figure skater Richard Johansson, who earned the silverish medal at the 1908 Olympics.

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#23. Girl: Rose

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 35,043 (Average: ane,669 born per twelvemonth)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #18; 2,845 babies born)
- Least popular yr: 1880 (Rank: #30; 700 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #123 (two,432 babies built-in)

Rose is a shortened version of a Germanic name that first came into utilise in the Middle Ages in England, and like other names of the time, was thought to be a version of "ros," meaning "equus caballus." All the same, by the 1900s, it became more and more pop to proper noun girls afterward flowers, and Rose became a mutual choice for parents looking to proper name their daughters in accordance with that tradition.

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#23. Boy: Joe

- Total Gilded Historic period babies with this name: 15,758 (Average: 750 built-in per year)
- Well-nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #22; one,179 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1891 (Rank: #29; 584 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #695 (345 babies born)

Joe is often a nickname for Joseph, a biblical name, and the name Joseph itself ways "Jehovah increases." But in the early 1900s, the proper noun Joe on its own became pop, especially every bit popular civilisation figures like Joe DiMaggio became household names. In 1912, the #2 song of the twelvemonth was "Ragtime Cowboy Joe" by Bob Roberts, which further helped popularize the proper noun.

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#22. Daughter: Martha

- Full Gilt Historic period babies with this name: 35,763 (Average: i,703 built-in per twelvemonth)
- Well-nigh pop yr: 1900 (Rank: #28; 2,437 babies built-in)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #16; ane,040 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #794 (341 babies born)

Another biblical name, Martha ways "the lady" or "mistress." In the New Testament, Martha was the sister of Lazarus and Mary of Bethany. The proper noun wasn't commonplace in England until after the Protestant Reformation but became popular stateside when Martha Washington served equally the Us' first First Lady.

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#22. Boy: David

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: fifteen,787 (Boilerplate: 752 built-in per year)
- About popular year: 1900 (Rank: #32; 885 babies built-in)
- Least popular year: 1899 (Rank: #32; 646 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #22 (nine,697 babies born)

David has been a consistently popular name since the Center Ages—it can trace its roots to King David from The Bible—and even remains one of the most pop modern-24-hour interval names in England, Wales, Spain, and the United States. The name David too became common in the tardily 1800s and early 1900s after Charles Dickens published "David Copperfield" in 1850.

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#21. Girl: Mabel

- Total Golden Age babies with this proper noun: 37,596 (Average: 1,790 built-in per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #25; 2,509 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #22; 808 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #435 (722 babies born)

Mabel is a shortened version of the name Amabel, both of which were popular names in the medieval 12th century in Europe. Even so, the use of the proper noun declined later on the 14th century and but rose in popularity once again in the 19th century every bit medieval names started to become trendy during the Victorian era. William Wordsworth also used the name Mabel in his 1835 sonnet "St. Catherine of Ledbury," which may take contributed to its rising usage during the Gilded Age.

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#21. Boy: Roy

- Full Gold Historic period babies with this proper noun: 17,559 (Average: 836 born per yr)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #21; 1,215 babies built-in)
- Least pop year: 1881 (Rank: #34; 440 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #541 (514 babies born)

The name Roy is thought to be the anglicized version of the Gaelic name Ruadh, which meant "blood-red," and was frequently used as a nickname for people with red hair. Fittingly, Scottish outlaw and Roy namesake Rob Roy, who was often referred to every bit the Scottish Robin Hood, besides had red hair. Sir Walter Scott memorialized Rob Roy in his 1818 novel of the same proper name, and William Wordsworth also penned poems nigh the outlaw, giving rise to the proper noun's popularity in the early 1900s.

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Louis Osakwe // Wikimedia Commons

#twenty. Daughter: Edna

- Total Golden Age babies with this name: 38,190 (Average: 1,819 born per year)
- Most popular twelvemonth: 1900 (Rank: #12; 3,102 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #45; 588 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #one,734 (117 babies born)

The name Edna means "rejuvenation" and "delight," and it carries some biblical roots: In the Apocrypha, an Edna appears as a female parent. By the belatedly 19th century, Edna had soared to popularity, reaching #xi on the U.Due south. infant proper noun list. Writers Edna St. Vincent Millay and Edna Ferber were just two of the girls to be given the name Edna in the last decade of the 1800s.

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#xx. Boy: Louis

- Total Gilded Age babies with this proper name: 17,816 (Average: 848 born per yr)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #26; i,098 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1881 (Rank: #19; 746 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #263 (one,368 babies born)

Louis is a French name, and information technology was then popular in the country that it was used as the name for 18 kings of France, spanning hundreds of years. Louis means "famous warrior" or "famous fighter" and was said to come up from Frankish Rex Clovis I—or in Latin, Chlodevech. Jazz musician Louis Armstrong is just one famous bearer of the name, having been born in 1901 during the name'southward peak popularity.

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Adina Voicu // Wikimedia Commons

#19. Girl: Marie

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 38,199 (Boilerplate: 1,819 born per yr)
- Most pop year: 1900 (Rank: #9; 3,856 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #55; 471 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #576 (530 babies born)

The name Marie is the French version of the biblical name Mary, who was the mother of Jesus and has remained a common name for girls throughout history in the western world. Although Marie is yet widely used equally a name in Europe, it's less mutual in the U.s. and is more than often used as a middle proper noun. Physicist Marie Curie helped popularize the name after she won the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1903, along with her hubby, for their written report of spontaneous radiation.

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#19. Male child: Samuel

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 17,863 (Average: 851 built-in per year)
- Nigh popular twelvemonth: 1880 (Rank: #17; ane,024 babies born)
- Least pop twelvemonth: 1899 (Rank: #30; 704 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #21 (9,734 babies born)

Samuel has Hebrew origins, and means either "name of God" or "God has heard." In the Sometime Testament, Samuel anointed Saul equally the first king of State of israel and was the concluding of the ruling judges. Samuel gained popularity as a Christian name after the Protestant Reformation. Information technology became popular stateside in the mid-1800s with figures similar inventor Samuel Morse and writers Samuel Beckett and Samuel Clemens (allonym Mark Twain) becoming mainstays of pop civilisation.

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#eighteen. Girl: Lillian

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 38,790 (Average: one,847 built-in per yr)
- Virtually popular year: 1900 (Rank: #10; three,414 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #32; 672 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #34 (5,534 babies born)

The proper noun Lillian is an English version of the proper noun Lilly, derived from the lily flower, and is said to represent innocence and beauty. Moving picture and theater actress Lillian Gish, who was born in 1893, helped to popularize the name in the United states of america, likewise as playwright Lillian Hellman, who was born in 1905 during the peak of the Lillian proper name craze.

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#18. Boy: Willie

- Full Aureate Historic period babies with this name: 17,868 (Boilerplate: 851 born per year)
- Nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #xiv; ii,113 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular twelvemonth: 1883 (Rank: #34; 474 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #933 (224 babies born)

Willie is an English language name, short for William, which was one of the most pop names in England after William the Conqueror became the commencement Norman rex of England in the 11th century. The nickname Willie became mutual in the United States outset in the 1900s and is most often associated today with American baseball player Willie Mays, who was born in 1931.

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#17. Girl: Ida

- Total Gilded Age babies with this proper name: 41,780 (Average: 1,990 born per year)
- About popular year: 1900 (Rank: #30; 2,285 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1881 (Rank: #7; 1,439 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #1,220 (190 babies born)

Ida is a German name that means "industrious one." In the early 1900s, the name hitting #ten on the infant name listing afterward information technology soared to popularity thanks to an 1847 poem by Alfred Tennyson, titled, "The Princess." The poem later inspired an operetta, "Princess Ida," which featured music by Arthur Sullivan and libretto by W.S. Gilbert, and opened in 1884. While Ida hasn't been in the Top one,000 names in the U.S. since the 1980s, it remains popular in Scandinavian countries: Ida is currently the #iii proper name in Denmark and the #10 name in Norway.

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#17. Boy: Clarence

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 22,143 (Boilerplate: 1,054 built-in per twelvemonth)
- Well-nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #18; 1,483 babies built-in)
- To the lowest degree popular year: 1881 (Rank: #20; 668 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #1,115 (172 babies born)

The name Clarence was invented in 1362 for the third son of Rex Edward III when he married the heiress of Clare. The title is even so in play today, and the title of the Duke of Clarence is given to junior members of the British royal family. Still, the name became popular in the The states with the and so-called Scopes Monkey Trial in 1925, where a instructor by the proper noun of Scopes was accused of violating the law by pedagogy evolution. Clarence Darrow, who was already a renowned criminal defense attorney, volunteered to defend Scopes in the instance, bringing the proper name Clarence to a wide audience.

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#16. Girl: Grace

- Total Gilded Historic period babies with this name: 41,973 (Boilerplate: 1,999 born per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #17; 2,942 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular yr: 1880 (Rank: #19; 982 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #24 (6,724 babies built-in)

The name Grace has Latin origins, but the before version of the proper name was really Gracia during the Heart Ages. It wasn't until the Puritans began using Christian values as names in the 16th century that the name Grace became pop in the Western earth. The name was developed in reference to the divine grace of God, and was afterward adopted by Americans during the Victorian era. Actress and Princess of Monaco Grace Kelly, who was born later in 1929, helped to further popularize the name.

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#sixteen. Boy: Albert

- Total Golden Age babies with this name: 29,869 (Boilerplate: ane,422 born per year)
- Most popular yr: 1900 (Rank: #xvi; 1,741 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1891 (Rank: #16; ane,207 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #452 (657 babies born)

Albert ways "noble" and "bright," and is the English language version of the Old German language name Adalbert. The proper name became commonplace when Queen Victoria ascended the throne in the United kingdom. She was married to Prince Albert, who was famous for his wholehearted support of scientific discovery and exploration. Prince Albert died in 1861, just a decade before renowned physicist Albert Einstein was born in 1879.

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#15. Girl: Bessie

- Total Gilt Age babies with this name: 42,834 (Average: 2,040 born per year)
- Virtually popular twelvemonth: 1900 (Rank: #15; 3,044 babies built-in)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #23; 796 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #10,471 (ix babies born)

Although Bessie is sometimes thought of as a nickname for Elizabeth, it is actually a name with its ain with Hebrew origins, meaning, "pledged to God." Bessie has been used since the 19th century and entered the public consciousness when Charlotte Brontë published "Jane Eyre" in 1847, a novel that featured a graphic symbol named Bessie. Sean O'Casey later used the name for a character in his 1926 play, "The Plough and the Stars."

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#15. Boy: Fred

- Full Gilded Age babies with this proper name: 31,518 (Average: ane,501 born per twelvemonth)
- Most popular year: 1888 (Rank: #15; ane,665 babies born)
- Least popular yr: 1899 (Rank: #xvi; 1,182 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #1,649 (97 babies born)

Fred is a shortened version of the name Frederick, a Germanic proper noun significant "peaceful ruler." The Normans introduced the name in England in the 11th century, simply information technology didn't become common until later when information technology was brought dorsum by the German Firm of Hanover in the 18th century. American role player and dancer Fred Astaire was ane of the many boys to be named Fred when he was built-in in 1899.

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#14. Girl: Ruth

- Total Gilt Age babies with this proper name: 42,930 (Average: ii,044 born per year)
- Most pop year: 1900 (Rank: #5; 4,765 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular year: 1880 (Rank: #93; 234 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #265 (1,234 babies born)

The proper noun Ruth is a Hebrew proper name meaning "friend," and appears in The Bible in the Book of Ruth in the Old Testament. The biblical Ruth married Boaz and was related to King David. Ruth was used as a Christian proper name during the Protestant Reformation. In the United states of america, President Grover Cleveland named his girl Ruth when she was born in 1891, sparking a quasi-national sensation.

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#14. Boy: Arthur

- Total Aureate Age babies with this name: 34,382 (Average: i,637 born per yr)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #15; 1,853 babies born)
- Least popular twelvemonth: 1899 (Rank: #14; 1,357 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #229 (1,642 babies born)

Arthur has Celtic origins meaning "bear," but today, the name is most commonly associated with King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. Arthur established its roots in American popular culture with Nathaniel Hawthorne'south "The Carmine Letter," which featured a character named Arthur, and Edgar Allan Poe'due south "The Narrative of Arthur Gordon Pym of Nantucket."

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#xiii. Daughter: Annie

- Total Aureate Age babies with this name: 43,473 (Average: two,070 born per twelvemonth)
- Nigh popular yr: 1900 (Rank: #11; three,324 babies built-in)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #eleven; 1,258 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #308 (ane,080 babies born)

Annie is oftentimes used as a nickname for Anna or Anne, and information technology has become a proper noun of its own accord. Information technology means "prayer" in Hebrew. Annie Oakley helped propel Annie into a household proper name afterwards she won a shooting lucifer at age 15 in 1875, becoming an immensely pop performer and traveling the country with Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show. Later on, Annie was used as the name for the championship character in "Niggling Orphan Annie," which became and continues to exist a mainstay in pop civilization.

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#13. Boy: Walter

- Total Gilded Historic period babies with this proper name: 39,977 (Average: 1,904 built-in per twelvemonth)
- Nigh pop twelvemonth: 1900 (Rank: #12; 2,298 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1891 (Rank: #13; i,668 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #271 (1,303 babies born)

Walter is a Germanic name that means "ruler of the army," and its namesakes live up to the definition. English poet and explorer Sir Walter Raleigh helped plant the proper name during his lifetime before his death in 1618, and novelist Sir Walter Scott carried on the tradition until his expiry in 1832. The name Walter was originally brought to England by the Normans, where it replaced the Old English language name of Wealdhere.

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Patryk Kosmider // Shutterstock

#12. Girl: Alice

- Full Gilded Age babies with this name: 44,616 (Boilerplate: ii,125 born per yr)
- Nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #14; three,059 babies born)
- Least pop year: 1881 (Rank: #10; ane,308 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #71 (3,643 babies built-in)

Alice originated from the Old English proper name Aalis, which comes from the Germanic name Adalhaidis, and means "noble" and "kind." The name entered the mainstream when Queen Victoria ascended the throne and named her second girl Alice, and, of course, Lewis Carroll's "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland," which besides popularized the name after the novel was published in 1865.

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#12. Male child: Harry

- Total Golden Age babies with this name: 46,251 (Boilerplate: two,202 born per yr)
- Near popular year: 1888 (Rank: #nine; two,759 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular yr: 1899 (Rank: #thirteen; 1,732 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #620 (427 babies born)

The proper name Harry came to be as a medieval English language version of the French name Henri. Shortly later information technology was introduced, it fell out of mode and was replaced by the proper noun Henry. But William Shakespeare helped to reintroduce Harry with his play "Henry V," in which the titular character is referred to as Prince Harry. Past the 1600s, the name had earned its place in the Western world and became an near universal popular name.

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#xi. Daughter: Clara

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 46,016 (Average: 2,191 born per year)
- Virtually popular year: 1900 (Rank: #19; ii,826 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #12; 1,226 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #103 (2,877 babies born)

Clara is a Latin name that means "brilliant" and "clear." Silent film star Clara Bow popularized the name in the early 1900s with her many appearances on the silver screen, but Clara was also widely known as the main graphic symbol in "The Nutcracker." Clara Barton, a nurse who founded the American Red Cross, was likewise a popular figure later the American Civil State of war and continued to serve as inspiration for the name Clara until her decease in 1912.

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#eleven. Boy: Thomas

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 47,422 (Average: 2,258 born per year)
- Near popular twelvemonth: 1882 (Rank: #viii; ii,610 babies built-in)
- Least popular year: 1899 (Rank: #11; 1,811 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #49 (half dozen,779 babies born)

Thomas is the proper name of an apostle in the New Testament of The Bible, and thanks to this appearance, Thomas became a popular name for Christians to bestow upon their sons. The name was introduced in England by the Normans and became widespread with the ascent of Saint Thomas Becket, a 12th-century archbishop. In the Us, American President Thomas Jefferson and inventor Thomas Edison helped to popularize the proper noun.

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#10. Daughter: Bertha

- Total Gilded Historic period babies with this name: 46,407 (Boilerplate: ii,210 born per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #xvi; 3,019 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular year: 1880 (Rank: #9; 1,320 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #iv,740 (28 babies born)

The German proper noun Bertha means "bright" and "glorious," and was known amongst Christians due to Saint Bertha of Kent, a figure who helped spread Christianity. Charlemagne's mother and girl were also named Bertha. After, Bertha was the name of a character in "Jane Eyre," also as a character in Edith Wharton's "The House of Mirth," which was published in 1905.

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#x. Boy: Edward

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 47,886 (Boilerplate: 2,280 born per year)
- Most pop year: 1900 (Rank: #ix; 2,720 babies born)
- Least pop year: 1899 (Rank: #nine; 1,901 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #169 (2,268 babies born)

The name Edward comes from two Old English words, "ead," pregnant wealth, and "weard," meaning guard. Several aboriginal English kings bore the name Edward, the last one existence Saint Edward the Confessor, who was so beloved that people kept using the name Edward even after the Normans took over. British composer Edward Elgar was a famous bearer of the name, and "Jane Eyre" also helped launch the proper noun to success with the character Edward Rochester, the main love interest in the novel.

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#9. Girl: Minnie

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 49,012 (Average: 2,334 born per year)
- Virtually popular year: 1900 (Rank: #22; two,673 babies born)
- To the lowest degree pop year: 1881 (Rank: #half dozen; 1,653 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #2,592 (66 babies built-in)

While many may associate Minnie today with Minnie Mouse, the name ways "of the heed" and "intellect," and was a popular nickname for Minerva, Mary, and Margaret. Minnie became popular through literature and music, namely as a graphic symbol in Charles Dickens' "Little Dorrit," and Eugene O'Neill's "Mourning Becomes Electra."

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#9. Boy: Henry

- Full Gilded Age babies with this name: 48,409 (Average: 2,305 born per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #10; 2,606 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1899 (Rank: #x; 1,831 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #sixteen (10,649 babies born)

The name Henry means "ruler of the habitation" and has German and French origins. Henry has been a pop proper name for British royalty, including the infamous King Henry VIII. The name rose to popularity in the United states of america with figures like Henry Ford and author Henry David Thoreau becoming household names.

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#8. Girl: Ethel

- Full Gilded Age babies with this name: l,215 (Average: 2,391 born per year)
- Most popular twelvemonth: 1900 (Rank: #8; iii,896 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #38; 633 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #iv,327 (32 babies built-in)

Ethel has Quondam English language roots and ways "noble," coming into style in the 19th century when Old English names started becoming trendy. The 1855 novel "The Newcomes" past William Makepeace Thackeray and the 1856 novel "The Daisy Chain" by C.M. Yonge helped popularize the proper noun in the latter one-half of the century. Singer Ethel Merman, who was born in 1908, was 1 of the many girls to be named Ethel during the Golden Historic period.

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#8. Boy: Robert

- Total Aureate Age babies with this name: 54,042 (Average: 2,573 born per yr)
- Virtually popular year: 1900 (Rank: #6; 3,821 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1887 (Rank: #ten; two,125 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #71 (5,140 babies born)

A popular name for boys since the Centre Ages, Robert means, "brilliant" and "fame." The name was brought to England by the Normans and went on to exist the name of three kings of Scotland, namely Robert the Bruce. Amalgamated general Robert East. Lee was a well-known figure of the time in the mid-to-late-1800s.

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#vii. Daughter: Florence

- Full Gilded Age babies with this name: 52,963 (Average: two,522 born per yr)
- Most pop twelvemonth: 1900 (Rank: #7; 3,920 babies built-in)
- Least popular yr: 1881 (Rank: #16; 1,046 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #970 (269 babies born)

Florence is derived from the Latin name Florentius, and means "prosperous" or "flourishing." Many early Christian saints were named Florence, and the name was commonly bestowed in honour of those saints during the Middle Ages. Florence Nightingale, who lived until 1910, helped popularize the name during her lifetime when she served equally a nurse in British hospitals, where she came to be known every bit the modern founder of nursing.

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#vii. Male child: Joseph

- Full Aureate Age babies with this name: 59,006 (Average: two,810 born per year)
- Most pop year: 1900 (Rank: #7; iii,714 babies built-in)
- Least pop twelvemonth: 1881 (Rank: #7; 2,456 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #23 (9,555 babies built-in)

Joseph is a Hebrew name meaning "he volition add," and appears in the Old Attestation as the eleventh son of Jacob. During the Heart Ages, Joseph was a more mutual Jewish name than a Christian name, but it became more widespread after the Protestant Reformation. The founder of Mormonism, Joseph Smith, who lived from 1805 until 1844, cemented the name's religious roots and helped fuel its popularity.

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#half dozen. Daughter: Helen

- Total Gold Age babies with this name: 55,641 (Average: ii,650 born per twelvemonth)
- Well-nigh popular year: 1900 (Rank: #2; 6,343 babies born)
- Least pop year: 1881 (Rank: #43; 612 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #413 (745 babies born)

Helen is a Greek name significant, "vivid, shining light" and its most famous bearer is perhaps Helen of Troy, the "face up that launched a grand ships" and ignited the Trojan War in Greek mythology. In mythology, Helen is the daughter of Leda and Zeus and was born to Leda as a swan. The proper noun landed in the superlative five baby names for several decades of the 1900s but was popular at the turn of the century thanks to Helen Keller, a deaf-blind activist and writer.

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#vi. Boy: Frank

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 63,162 (Average: 3,008 built-in per twelvemonth)
- Virtually pop year: 1900 (Rank: #viii; three,477 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1899 (Rank: #8; two,550 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #392 (803 babies built-in)

Frank is a Germanic name that actually referred to a tribe of Germanics: the Franks. The Franks lived in French republic and the Netherlands in the third and quaternary centuries, and the name Frank was somewhen brought to England past the Normans. At times, Frank has been used every bit a nickname for Francis. L. Frank Baum, the author of the honey "Wizard of Oz" brought renewed attention to the proper name when the novel was published in 1900, as did the architect Frank Lloyd Wright.

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#5. Girl: Emma

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 57,151 (Average: 2,721 born per year)
- About popular twelvemonth: 1892 (Rank: #7; 3,128 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #3; ii,003 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #1 (18,688 babies born)

The name Emma is idea to accept originated from the German language discussion "ermen," which ways whole or universal. Emma was introduced and subsequently made popular by Emma of Normandy, the queen of England, Denmark, and Norway in the 11th century. Emma has remained an immensely popular proper noun throughout the 20th century and into the 21st century and is normally associated with Jane Austen, who published her novel "Emma" in 1815.

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#5. Boy: Charles

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 87,603 (Average: 4,172 born per year)
- Most popular year: 1880 (Rank: #4; 5,348 babies born)
- Least pop year: 1899 (Rank: #five; three,147 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #52 (half-dozen,604 babies born)

Charles is derived from the name Karl, a Germanic proper name that came from a Germanic discussion meaning "man." Charles the Great, or Charlemagne, king of the Franks in the eighth century, helped to popularize the name, and Charles later was the name of various Holy Roman emperors and European kings. But the proper name wasn't commonplace in England until the 17th century when Mary Queen of Scots named her son Charles. In the more mod era, famous Charles namesakes include writer Charles Dickens and naturalist Charles Darwin.

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#4. Girl: Elizabeth

- Total Aureate Age babies with this name: 62,981 (Average: two,999 born per year)
- Near popular year: 1900 (Rank: #vi; 4,096 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular twelvemonth: 1881 (Rank: #4; 1,852 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #13 (viii,513 babies born)

Elizabeth is a proper noun of Hebrew origin, meaning, "consecrated to God" or "God is bountiful." The proper name is derived from Elisheba, the wife of Aaron in the Bible. The proper name Elizabeth as well appears in the New Testament as the mother of John the Baptist. Queen Elizabeth I of England, who was born in 1533, bridged the proper name's gap with the modern era, and one of her successors and namesakes—Queen Elizabeth II—is the electric current head monarch of the United Kingdom. Actress Elizabeth Taylor is another famous bearer of the name.

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#iv. Boy: George

- Full Gilded Age babies with this proper noun: 96,412 (Average: 4,591 born per twelvemonth)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #four; five,403 babies born)
- To the lowest degree popular year: 1891 (Rank: #4; 3,931 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #127 (3,059 babies born)

The name George comes from the Greek proper noun Georgios, which was derived from a Greek give-and-take that ways "farmer" or "earth-worker." Although Saint George was an important religious figure for European Christians, the name wasn't typically used in England until King George I came to power in the 18th century. George Washington became the first president of the United States, giving the name a permanent place in American culture. Writer Mary Anne Evans, who lived from 1819 to 1880, used the name George Eliot as her pen name.

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#3. Girl: Margaret

- Total Aureate Age babies with this name: 65,041 (Average: 3,097 born per year)
- Nearly popular year: 1900 (Rank: #iv; 5,304 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1880 (Rank: #half-dozen; i,578 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #127 (2,312 babies born)

Margaret is an English version of the French name Marguerite, which in plow came from the Hebrew name Margaron, meaning "pearl." In Christianity, Saint Margaret is the patron saint of expectant mothers and later became a common proper name in the British regal family. Princess Margaret bore the proper noun later in the 1900s, and was dear by the printing and her subjects, who enjoyed following her social life and romantic endeavors until her death in 2002.

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#iii. Male child: James

- Total Gilded Age babies with this proper name: 112,025 (Average: five,335 born per year)
- Most pop year: 1900 (Rank: #3; vii,245 babies built-in)
- Least pop year: 1891 (Rank: #3; 4,516 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #four (13,525 babies born)

The name James comes from both Hebrew and Greek and is mentioned numerous times in the Bible, as the proper noun of ii apostles in the New Attestation, the apostle John's brother, and Jesus' brother. In the Center Ages, the proper name was more mutual in Scotland than in England, merely when Scottish King James 6 took the throne in England, the proper name became much more widespread. James Madison and James Monroe were the fourth and 5th presidents of the United States—simply ii of the half-dozen presidents overall that share the name.

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#2. Girl: Anna

- Total Golden Age babies with this name: 99,534 (Average: 4,740 born per yr)
- Almost popular twelvemonth: 1900 (Rank: #3; vi,114 babies born)
- Least pop year: 1880 (Rank: #2; ii,604 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #54 (four,145 babies born)

Anna is said to accept come from the Hebrew proper name Hannah, and ways "gracious." Anna was a common proper name for people living in the Byzantine Empire and was popular amidst Christians who connected the proper noun to Saint Anna. The name was used by many Russian royals, chiefly an 18th-century empress of Russia. Leo Tolstoy's 1878 novel "Anna Karenina" also thrust the name into public consciousness, given the commercial success of the volume.

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#2. Boy: William

- Total Gilded Historic period babies with this proper noun: 165,704 (Boilerplate: 7,891 born per yr)
- Nigh popular year: 1880 (Rank: #two; ix,532 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1899 (Rank: #2; 6,086 babies built-in)
- 2018 rank: #3 (fourteen,516 babies born)

William originated from the German name Willahelm, which was comprised of the words "will," meaning want, and "helm," pregnant "protection." The proper noun rose exponentially in popularity after William the Conqueror became the first Norman king of England in the 11th century. Three other English kings were later named William, likewise as neighboring royals in other countries. But the proper noun William too has a rich literary history: Playwright William Shakespeare is perhaps one of the almost famous Williams, along with poet William Wordsworth and author William Faulkner, who was built-in in 1897 but before the tiptop of the proper noun'southward popularity.

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#ane. Girl: Mary

- Total Gilded Age babies with this proper noun: 239,510 (Average: 11,405 born per year)
- Virtually popular yr: 1900 (Rank: #i; 16,706 babies born)
- Least popular twelvemonth: 1881 (Rank: #1; 6,919 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #126 (two,327 babies born)

Mary is the English version of the biblical Hebrew proper noun Miriam, and means "dear" or "child nosotros wished for." Mary itself is also a biblical name, having been the mother of Jesus. It was a common name for Christian Europeans and royals. Mary Shelley, who wrote the novel "Frankenstein," bolstered the case for the proper noun throughout her life until her death in 1851, as did the series of "Mary Poppins" children'south books, which were published in the 1930s.

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#one. Boy: John

- Total Gilded Age babies with this name: 180,444 (Boilerplate: eight,593 built-in per year)
- Most popular year: 1900 (Rank: #1; 9,829 babies born)
- Least popular year: 1899 (Rank: #1; 6,990 babies born)
- 2018 rank: #27 (9,119 babies built-in)

The name John is derived from the Latin name Johannes, which also had roots in Hebrew. While a version of the proper noun John appears in the Old Testament, John really owes its popularity to the New Testament, which features John the Baptist and the apostle John, who was close to Jesus. During the First Crusade, the name swept western Europe, and during the Middle Ages, about a fifth of all boys born were named John. Famous American bearers of the name include President John Adams and author John Steinbeck.

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