A Case for the Letter: B

I love the history of naming. What names were popular in the late 1800s? (Actually, I would ask even further back than that, but the Social Security Administration only started keeping track of names in 1880.) How have trends changed since then? Has there been a return of certain names? When did certain names enter our environment? To answer these questions, I will attempt to make a case study and present information for us all to analyze.

The SSA has conveniently published the popularity of the top 200 names in each decade. This makes my job a little easier. As much as I would love to go through the top names in each year, doing it by decade cuts the work down significantly. I've also decided to concentrate on one letter at a time. We will begin with B!

Top B Names Per Decade
First we will look at the top names of each decade. It is fascinating to see the gradual change from Bertha to Brianna and Benjamin to... well, Benjamin stayed near the top most of the time, but Bert is definitely not as popular as it once was.

Take a look for your self. The following are lists of the most popular B names in the top 200 for each decade since the 1880s.  I make observations after each decade of the differences between that decade and the one prior.

1880s
8 Bertha
13 Bessie
53 Blanche
103 Beulah
107 Belle
130 Beatrice
135 Barbara
145 Betty
162 Bettie
168 Birdie
171 Bertie
175 Bess
183 Bernice

32 Benjamin
53 Ben
64 Bert
92 Bernard

Benjamin is still a very common name so there is no real mystery why it's at the top in the 1880s. But what made Bertha such an attractive option during this time? Nowadays it seems like a drastic choice and not very "pretty" (I can't help but think of the word "birth" which is not the most glamorous of pictures), but it does have a great meaning (bright, famous). It doesn't disappear from the top 200 until the 1950s. Some say the name really started to decrease in popularity after WWI when the Germans named their cannon "Big Bertha," but it was still in the top 100 until the 1930s. It's a similar situation for the name Bert (in sound and meaning), but the harsh sound seems more appropriate for a boy. In any case, it leaves the top 200 in the 1920s. Another note right off the bat: I mistakenly assumed that changing the spellings of names was something of a recent fad. While I think the number of creative spellings has definitely increased and there are many seen below the top 200, it was interesting to see the variations in Betty/Bettie and Birdie/Bertie here.

1890s
12 Bertha
14 Bessie
56 Blanche
71 Beatrice
78 Beulah
114 Bernice
136 Betty
154 Barbara
162 Belle

47 Benjamin
63 Ben
82 Bernard
109 Bert
169 Bennie
191 Bill

The addition of Bill and Bennie to the mix shows, along with Ben, Bessie, and Betty, the use of traditional nicknames as first names. The variant spelling of Bettie falls from the top 200 girl names, as do Birdie, Bertie, and Bess.

1900s
20 Bertha
22 Bessie
47 Beatrice
63 Blanche
73 Bernice
77 Beulah
86 Betty
148 Barbara
194 Bonnie

65 Benjamin
75 Bernard
81 Ben
144 Bill
147 Bennie
161 Bert

Bonnie makes an appearance on the girls side at the expense of Belle, but there are no drastic differences among the rest of the girls nor the boys.

1910s
37 Betty
38 Beatrice
42 Bernice
43 Bertha
55 Bessie
76 Barbara
87 Blanche
95 Beulah
177 Bonnie

48 Bernard
74 Benjamin
118 Ben
148 Bill
163 Bennie
166 Bruce
200 Bert

New top names for those beginning with B! Down go Benjamin and Bertha for Bernard and Betty. Betty would stay at the top of the B names until the 1940s, while Bernard has a shorter reign that ends with the 1930s. Betty is a nickname for the name Elizabeth and remains in the top 200 until the 1970s. Both Betty and Bernard stay consistently in the top 200 until the 1970s, when the Br- names take over. The rest of the names are the same, except for the addition of the mighty Bruce among the boys.

1920s
4 Betty
18 Barbara
46 Bernice
53 Beatrice
70 Bertha
89 Bessie
92 Beverly
115 Bonnie
135 Blanche
138 Beulah
139 Billie
169 Bette
195 Bettie

47 Bernard
48 Billy
87 Bill
91 Benjamin
129 Bobby
130 Bob
133 Bruce
151 Ben
160 Billie
170 Bennie

Welcome back, Bettie (and Betty is #4 for the entire decade)! Let's also add Beverly, Billie, and Bette to the girls and the William/Robert nicknames Billy, Billie, Bobby, and Bob to the boys! Notice that Billy is more popular than Bill and Bobby is more popular than Bob. The only nickname name in the top 200 for boys that wasn't more popular than its stem was Bennie. Notice also that Billie is in the top 200 for both boys and girls (the first B name to do so). Oh, and Bert quietly slips out of the top 200.

1930s
2 Betty
3 Barbara
20 Beverly
66 Bonnie
87 Bernice
105 Beatrice
107 Billie
116 Bertha
126 Bobbie
132 Bessie

20 Billy
27 Bobby
62 Bill
64 Bernard
81 Bruce
85 Bob
121 Benjamin
153 Billie
168 Bennie
170 Ben
190 Benny
195 Barry

I think it's something to note that Betty is the #2 girl name for the decade... the highest a B name would ever make.  Barbara is close behind at #3. The girl Bobbie comes into play in the 1930s, while Blanche and Beulah fall out. Bettie also disappears from the top again, while Bette ends her short stay. Billy takes over the top boy B name, and Benny and Barry enter the picture. I've always thought that the -ie ending of a name made it more feminine than -y, so it always seems strange to see Billie and Bennie so prominent for the boys historically.

1940s
3 Barbara
11 Betty
26 Brenda
31 Beverly
33 Bonnie
153 Bernice
156 Billie
157 Bertha
159 Bobbie
166 Beatrice

39 Bruce
42 Billy
48 Bobby
75 Bill
82 Barry
97 Bernard
112 Brian
114 Bob
135 Benjamin
188 Benny
196 Bennie

Barbara overtakes Betty, but still remains #3. Brenda comes out of nowhere to enter the top 50 of the decade, and Bessie fall out. I checked the name Brenda individually, and there was a jump in her ranking between 1938 at #243 and 1939 at #86,  and during the 1940s she rose from #42 to her peak in 1949 at #13. Brenda was also very popular through the 1950s and into the 1960s when it then gradually started to fall. The main thing socially I can find that could have exposed the name during this time is the American debutante Brenda Frazier (the first "celebutante") who was on the cover of Life magazine when she made her debut in 1938. As for the boys, Billie and Ben fall out of the top 200, Brian debuts, and Bruce takes the top spot from Billy.

1950s
6 Barbara
18 Brenda
35 Betty
36 Beverly
50 Bonnie
125 Beth
148 Becky
166 Belinda

32 Bruce
34 Brian
67 Billy
72 Barry
75 Bobby
115 Bradley
126 Bernard
136 Bill
137 Benjamin
148 Bryan
174 Brad
191 Brent

While the top names for boys and girls remains the same, there is quite a bit of turnover in the 1950s. We say bye-bye to Bernice, Billie, Bertha, Bobbie and Beatrice and hello to Beth, Becky and Belinda! We say ta-ta to Bob, Benny and Bennie and hi to Bradley, Bryan, Brad and Brent (the Br- names are really starting to seeping in)!

1960s
19 Brenda
21 Barbara
66 Beth
85 Beverly
87 Bonnie
102 Betty
135 Becky
165 Belinda

16 Brian
47 Bruce
61 Bryan
72 Bradley
73 Billy
80 Barry
81 Bobby
124 Brent
128 Brett
130 Benjamin
131 Bill
151 Brad
168 Bernard
196 Bob

Brenda is now at the top for the girl B names, and Brian takes over for the boys. The girl names switch order but stay the same, and there is only the return of Bob and the addition of Brett that change for the top 200 boy names. The Brian/Bryan combination will be in the top 100 throughout the 2000s decade.

1970s
60 Brenda
76 Barbara
81 Brandy
106 Brandi
110 Beth
153 Bridget
171 Bonnie
186 Brooke
189 Becky

8 Brian
44 Benjamin
46 Bryan
51 Brandon
57 Bradley
82 Brent
84 Billy
93 Bobby
94 Brett
123 Brad
132 Bruce
154 Barry

The 1970s are when Br- took over. Five of the nine girl names and eight of the 12 boy names in the top 200 begin with Br-. Brenda is the only carryover from the girl side, which also adds Brandy, Brandi, Bridget, and Brooke. Beverly, Betty, and Belinda leave to make room for them. Bill, Bernard and Bob fall out of the top 200, and Brandon jumps in. Brandon is another quick riser in the early 1970s, but I cannot really find anything that could have sparked its rise.

1980s
21 Brittany
63 Brandy
66 Brandi
83 Brooke
93 Brittney
99 Bethany
124 Brenda
154 Barbara
165 Brianna
166 Bridget
183 Beth

16 Brian
17 Brandon
31 Benjamin
51 Bryan
54 Bradley
77 Brett
95 Brent
116 Blake
126 Bobby
133 Billy
182 Brendan
185 Bruce
191 Brad

Not only does Brittany enter the girls' top 200 B names list for the first time, it takes the top spot! A variant also enters in Brittney. Bonnie and Becky fall while Bethany and another Br- name in Brianna rise. When I checked the individual years, Brittany jumps quite a bit in the early 1980s and reaches its peak in 1989-1991 at #3. But I cannot find any particular reason as to why Brittany caught on so much. On the boys' side, Barry leaves to make room for Blake and another Br- name in Brendan.

1990s
7 Brittany
26 Brianna
54 Brooke
83 Briana
87 Brittney
88 Breanna
101 Bailey
113 Bianca
117 Bethany
128 Brenda
142 Brandi
198 Brandy

11 Brandon
30 Benjamin
36 Brian
62 Bryan
80 Bradley
84 Blake
106 Brett
123 Brendan
135 Bryce
191 Brent
196 Brady

Briana, Breanna, Bailey and Bianca enter the scene while Bridget, Barbara and Beth make an exit. Besides Brooke, the top six B names in the 1990s are either a Brianna or a Brittany. Brandon takes over the top spot on the boys' side, Bryce and Brady rise, and Bobby, Billy, Bruce, and Brad fall. No more B nickname names in the top 200.

2000s
18 Brianna
47 Brooke
89 Bailey
90 Brooklyn
116 Briana
119 Breanna
180 Bianca
190 Brittany

21 Brandon
25 Benjamin
62 Brian
70 Bryan
85 Brayden
86 Blake
105 Bryce
119 Brady
153 Brody
162 Brendan
171 Braden
173 Bradley
199 Bryson

In the 2000s, six of the top eight girl names and 11 of the top 13 boy names begin with Br-. Add Brooklyn to the mix and subtract Brittney, Bethany, Brenda, Brandi and Brandy and you have the top girl B names. Did the Brittany/Brittney's fall so hard because of Miss Spears (who spells it Britney)? I wonder. Brayden, Brody, Braden and Bryson are now present. Brett and Brent are gone. The Br-version of an -ayden name, Brayden (as well as Braden), made a big jump in the 2000s as I'm sure most -ayden names did.

If you would like to see the birth numbers of these top 200 names, click here.

A Top 5 B Name?
I looked at the top 5 names for every individual year to see how high a B name ranked. One was never the top name, but Betty and Barbara made it to the #2 spot over several years. Betty was in the top 5 from 1923 until 1940 (#2 from 1928-1934) and Barbara was in the top 5 from 1831 until 1951 (#2 from 1937-1944). There have not been any boy B names in the top 5.

Unique Names
Now for the interesting names. I didn't go into the awesome amount of spellings given (some creative spellings may have made the list), but here are the names that caught my eye. I listed them under the decade where I first noticed them appear, and I apologize if there are any repetitions. Keep in mind that the list the SSA gives out provides the names given to at least five babies of the gender. A lot of these are names that are also words, two names pushed together, or just those I thought were fascinating.

1880s
Bama, Bamma
Belva
Bena
Berdie, Bertie, Birdie, Birtie, Byrde, Byrdie
Biddie
Bird, Byrd
Blossom
Brooksie

Banks
Bascom
Bee
Beecher
Berry
Beverly (was first on the list as a boy name, started showing up on the girl side in 1893)
Bird, Byrd
Bishop
Boss
Brown
Bunk
Burns
Butler


1890s
Beatriz
Bethel
Borghild
Brownie

Baker
Berlin
Bessie
Boysie
Bun


1900s
Beauty
Belen
Belzora
Beola
Blondell
Blonnie
Bluma
Burma

Bliss
Boy
Brutus
Bubber


1910s
Baby
Bessiemae
Bettijane, Bettyjane
Bettyann
Bettylee
Bettylou
Blandina
Bonzie
Boots
Brooxie
Bunnie

Baby
Banner
Battle
Benno
Bilbo
Bland
Boise, Boysie
Boots
Bose
Brace
Brack
Brewster
Bronko
Brownie
Bub
Bunnie
Bunyan
Burch
Bush


1920s
Babs
Balbina
Bambina
Ben
Benvinda
Bettejane
Bettejo
Bettelou
Bettilou
Bettyanne
Bettyjean
Bettyjo
Bettylu
Bettymae
Blossie
Bobbette
Bonniejean
Brunhilda

Belarmino
Bernt
Blackie
Blouncie
Brainard
Brother
Bond
Boykin


1930s
Barbaraann, Barbarann
Barbarajean
Beverlyann

Bengamin
Bing
Bonner
Bristol
Bucky


1940s
Bambi
Barbaralee
Barbarajo
Barbie
Bethann
Bonnielou

Biff
Branch
Bubba
Buzz


1950s
Bathsheba
Beebe
Betzaida
Billiejo
Bonnielee

Baldo (could be a nn for Baldomero)
Barak
Benzion
Bienvenido
Brain (not a typo)
Brick
Buzzy


1960s
Belkis, Belkys
Biafra
Bina
Blima
Bozena
Bronte
Buffy, Buffey, Buffi, Buffie

Bijan
Bismark
Bj
Bjorn
Blue
Boaz
Bonanza
Bouvier (1963)
Brace


1970s
Bandy
Breeze
Breezy
Brendalee
Brendaliz
British
Briza
Burgundy

Bandy
Bay
Billyjack
Bracy
Brando
Braun
Bray
Bridger
Bronc


1980s
Babygirl
Beige
Bethlehem
Billiejean
Blessing
Blimie, Blimy
Bobbiejean
Bobbiejo, Bobbijo, Bobbiejo
Bobbiesue, Bobbisue
Brandii
Brandylee
Britannica
Brittania

Babyboy
Banning
Billyjoe
Billyray
Bjay
Blong
Bobbyjoe
Bowie
Brayn
Brewster
Briananthony


1990s
Baileyann
Beautiful
Betzabel
Betzabeth
Bg (Babygirl?)
Biancamarie
Binaca
Bless
Blessed
Blessing
Blessy
Bonnibel
Brazil
Brittanyann
Brittanymarie
Brittanynicole

Babygirl
Bauer
Bb (Babyboy?)
Bosco
Brandonjames
Brandonlee
Brandonray
Brandonmichael
Braven
Bricker
Bridge
Bronco
Browning
Bruin


2000s
Beloved
Belladonna
Bellagrace
Bellamarie
Bellamia
Bellarose
Bellatrix
Blessin
Blessings
Brighten (another spelling of Brighton, which was also used for girls, or the word?)

Bach
Balmore
Bam
Bear
Beaumont
Benz
Blessing
Brandonkyle
Brazen
Brewer
Bright
Boomer
Boulder


2010s
Bellarae
Bellasophia
Briarrose

Breaker
Brilliant
Brink

Makes you wonder how many other words that begin with B could be names.

B for Twinkies
There a few B names that were chosen for twins in 2011. Those instances were: Blake and Brooklyn 7 (boy/girl), Brandon and Bryan 15, Benjamin and Alexander 20, Benjamin and Andrew 18, Benjamin and Samuel 17, Benjamin and William 12, and Brianna and Arianna 14.

The Numbers
If you love statistics, this is for you. I calculated the number of B names used as a percentage of total names and their various spellings used per year (that's all names recorded by SSA, given to five or more babies). I'm calling this the Percentage of B Names Used.  The most B names were used in 1884 with 5.22%. The least B names were used in 1978 with 3.28%. The 1970s definitely have the least amount of B names used, while more B names were used in the 1880s with some years from the first half of the 20th century sporadically placed. A look at all of the numbers can be seen here.

I may attempt to go into the total number of babies with B names as a percentage each year. I'm calling this the Percentage of B-Named Babies. This number does vary from the previous number I mentioned. For instance, in 2011, the Percentage of B Names Used was 4.07% and the Percentage of B-Named Babies was 4.87%. Which of these numbers do you like?  I guess it depends on how you want to look at the popularity of a letter... would you get a better idea of how popular a letter is by the number of babies with names beginning with a that letter or the number of names used that begin with that letter? There may be major differences between those numbers when doing certain letters, so I might look at it just the same... it will just take more work.  :)

When I do more Cases for the Letter, we can compare the numbers to see which letters are preferred the most and if there are any drastic changes in preferences over time.

Thank you for reading my Case for the Letter B! Please share any thoughts or observations you may have, along with your favorite B name of all time.