Birth year

Born in 1931? Here's your year in charts

In 1931, the top baby names were Mary and Robert and a newborn could expect to live 61.1 years.

Top baby names of 1931

Girls

  1. 1. Mary 60,299 babies, 5.7% of girls
  2. 2. Betty 36,105 babies, 3.4% of girls
  3. 3. Dorothy 26,524 babies, 2.5% of girls
  4. 4. Barbara 21,804 babies, 2.0% of girls
  5. 5. Joan 19,119 babies, 1.8% of girls

Boys

  1. 1. Robert 60,519 babies, 5.8% of boys
  2. 2. James 51,212 babies, 4.9% of boys
  3. 3. John 48,423 babies, 4.7% of boys
  4. 4. William 43,280 babies, 4.2% of boys
  5. 5. Richard 31,822 babies, 3.1% of boys

From Social Security card applications for babies born in the U.S.; names given to fewer than 5 babies are left out. Pick a name to see how many babies got it every year since 1880.

1931 then vs. now

  • Life expectancy at birth

    See the chart

    61.1 years in 1931, compared with 78.7 years in 2018

    How long a baby born that year could expect to live, at that year's death rates.

Prices are in dollars of the day, not adjusted for inflation. A figure is left out when its chart doesn't cover 1931.

$100 in 1931 buys about as much as $2,215.50 in September 2026. Try the inflation calculator

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