State name profile
Most Popular Baby Names in Oklahoma
The boys' and girls' names most often given in Oklahoma, ranked by total recorded births in Social Security Administration state data, 1910–2025.
- James
- #1 boy name
- Mary
- #1 girl name
- 1,629,322
- Births recorded
- 1910–2025
- Years covered
Oklahoma's all-time #1 names are James for boys and Mary for girls, based on 1,629,322 SSA birth registrations since 1910.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Oklahoma has recorded 1,629,322 births across its top 50 boy and top 50 girl names since 1910. James leads all boys with 75,761 births, while Mary tops the girls with 56,073. This profile covers decade-by-decade leaders and the full top-50 rankings for both sexes.
- James #1 boy name
- Mary #1 girl name
- 1,629,322 births recorded
Data updated Jun 2026
What the Data Says About Baby Names in Oklahoma
The Social Security Administration has registered 1,629,322 births across the top 50 boy and top 50 girl names in Oklahoma from 1910 through 2025, the portion of state-level naming data released publicly. Among boys, James leads with 75,761 cumulative births, while Mary tops the girl rankings with 56,073 births. The top 50 boy names collectively account for 1,006,368 births versus 622,954 for the top 50 girl names, reflecting the typical U.S. pattern in which boy-name distributions are more concentrated among fewer high-frequency entries. SSA state files include any name appearing five or more times in a given state-year, so lower-frequency names are suppressed for privacy and are not counted in these totals.
Decade-by-decade data for Oklahoma extends back to 1910, making it possible to track how Oklahoma parents' naming choices have shifted across more than a century of birth records. In the 1910s, the #1 boy name was James and the #1 girl name was Mary. By the 2020s, the top names had shifted to Liam for boys and Olivia for girls. Across 12 decades with complete data, the turnover in #1 rankings reflects broader cultural and generational forces, baby-boom naming conformity, the 1970s individualism shift, and the current resurgence of short, classic names.
Because Oklahoma reports under the same SSA framework as every other jurisdiction, these figures are directly comparable across all 50 states and the District of Columbia. The cumulative totals reflect every recorded birth registration rather than a survey sample, though names with four or fewer annual occurrences are excluded per SSA privacy policy. This means the true naming distribution in Oklahoma is slightly broader than what appears here, particularly for rare and emerging names. The dataset does not distinguish between alternate spellings (for example, Sophia and Sofia are tracked as separate names) or middle names, and reflects first names as they appear on Social Security card applications only. This page is for informational and research purposes.
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Top 10 girls' names in Oklahoma
Cumulative births recorded in state SSA files (1910–2025)
- Mary
Mary
56,073 births
- Betty
Betty
27,498 births
- Linda
Linda
22,877 births
- Barbara 18,835
Barbara
18,835 births
- Patricia 18,682
Patricia
18,682 births
- Jennifer 17,642
Jennifer
17,642 births
- Dorothy 16,765
Dorothy
16,765 births
- Elizabeth 16,153
Elizabeth
16,153 births
- Helen 14,234
Helen
14,234 births
- Donna 13,621
Donna
13,621 births
What this shows Mary leads Oklahoma girls with 56,073 recorded births.
Top 10 boys' names in Oklahoma
Cumulative births recorded in state SSA files (1910–2025)
- James
James
75,761 births
- John
John
57,711 births
- Robert
Robert
55,669 births
- William
William
50,423 births
- Michael
Michael
47,187 births
- David
David
44,036 births
- Charles
Charles
39,425 births
- Richard 26,870
Richard
26,870 births
- Christopher 25,110
Christopher
25,110 births
- Billy 23,571
Billy
23,571 births
What this shows James leads Oklahoma boys with 75,761 recorded births.
Decade-by-Decade Leaders
The #1 boy and girl name in Oklahoma for each decade
How we calculated this
For each decade, we sum every year's SSA state-level birth count per name, then take the single name with the highest ten-year total for each sex. A name can lead a decade with a strong single peak year or with steady, moderate demand across all ten years, the total treats both the same way.
| Decade | Top Boy | Births | Top Girl | Births |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1910s | James | 5,596 | Mary | 6,797 |
| 1920s | James | 11,983 | Mary | 13,971 |
| 1930s | James | 10,843 | Mary | 11,802 |
| 1940s | James | 11,252 | Linda | 11,370 |
| 1950s | James | 9,890 | Linda | 7,678 |
| 1960s | Michael | 8,120 | Lisa | 5,135 |
| 1970s | Michael | 8,843 | Jennifer | 6,910 |
| 1980s | Christopher | 8,096 | Jennifer | 6,642 |
| 1990s | Joshua | 4,387 | Ashley | 3,726 |
| 2000s | Jacob | 3,599 | Madison | 2,906 |
| 2010s | Noah | 1,999 | Emma | 2,497 |
| 2020s | Liam | 1,383 | Olivia | 1,243 |
Boy Top 50 Boy Names
| # | Name | Total Births |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | James | 75,761 |
| 2 | John | 57,711 |
| 3 | Robert | 55,669 |
| 4 | William | 50,423 |
| 5 | Michael | 47,187 |
| 6 | David | 44,036 |
| 7 | Charles | 39,425 |
| 8 | Richard | 26,870 |
| 9 | Christopher | 25,110 |
| 10 | Billy | 23,571 |
| 11 | Kenneth | 22,744 |
| 12 | Donald | 22,660 |
| 13 | Thomas | 21,538 |
| 14 | Jerry | 19,768 |
| 15 | Larry | 18,683 |
| 16 | Jack | 17,708 |
| 17 | Joshua | 17,671 |
| 18 | Matthew | 17,436 |
| 19 | Joseph | 17,433 |
| 20 | George | 17,190 |
| 21 | Gary | 16,437 |
| 22 | Steven | 16,326 |
| 23 | Paul | 16,181 |
| 24 | Daniel | 16,047 |
| 25 | Mark | 15,123 |
| 26 | Bobby | 14,936 |
| 27 | Ronald | 14,249 |
| 28 | Joe | 14,184 |
| 29 | Jimmy | 13,760 |
| 30 | Jason | 13,493 |
| 31 | Jacob | 12,876 |
| 32 | Kevin | 12,269 |
| 33 | Justin | 12,125 |
| 34 | Roy | 11,466 |
| 35 | Brian | 11,412 |
| 36 | Andrew | 11,260 |
| 37 | Harold | 11,067 |
| 38 | Timothy | 11,017 |
| 39 | Brandon | 11,012 |
| 40 | Raymond | 10,877 |
| 41 | Anthony | 10,770 |
| 42 | Carl | 10,722 |
| 43 | Ryan | 10,715 |
| 44 | Terry | 10,325 |
| 45 | Edward | 10,277 |
| 46 | Stephen | 10,207 |
| 47 | Samuel | 9,877 |
| 48 | Jeffrey | 9,603 |
| 49 | Johnny | 9,599 |
| 50 | Tyler | 9,562 |
Girl Top 50 Girl Names
| # | Name | Total Births |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mary | 56,073 |
| 2 | Betty | 27,498 |
| 3 | Linda | 22,877 |
| 4 | Barbara | 18,835 |
| 5 | Patricia | 18,682 |
| 6 | Jennifer | 17,642 |
| 7 | Dorothy | 16,765 |
| 8 | Elizabeth | 16,153 |
| 9 | Helen | 14,234 |
| 10 | Donna | 13,621 |
| 11 | Wanda | 13,135 |
| 12 | Sarah | 12,899 |
| 13 | Margaret | 12,618 |
| 14 | Shirley | 12,120 |
| 15 | Jessica | 11,829 |
| 16 | Ruth | 11,561 |
| 17 | Ruby | 11,442 |
| 18 | Ashley | 11,392 |
| 19 | Virginia | 11,241 |
| 20 | Karen | 11,232 |
| 21 | Sharon | 11,119 |
| 22 | Carolyn | 11,037 |
| 23 | Amanda | 10,930 |
| 24 | Kimberly | 10,578 |
| 25 | Nancy | 10,571 |
| 26 | Lisa | 10,463 |
| 27 | Anna | 10,397 |
| 28 | Carol | 10,065 |
| 29 | Sandra | 10,049 |
| 30 | Rebecca | 9,832 |
| 31 | Emily | 9,807 |
| 32 | Susan | 9,737 |
| 33 | Angela | 9,716 |
| 34 | Emma | 9,625 |
| 35 | Stephanie | 9,215 |
| 36 | Mildred | 9,069 |
| 37 | Brenda | 8,981 |
| 38 | Joyce | 8,977 |
| 39 | Amy | 8,967 |
| 40 | Deborah | 8,921 |
| 41 | Laura | 8,880 |
| 42 | Melissa | 8,776 |
| 43 | Evelyn | 8,567 |
| 44 | Frances | 8,324 |
| 45 | Norma | 8,319 |
| 46 | Pamela | 8,305 |
| 47 | Cynthia | 8,141 |
| 48 | Doris | 8,100 |
| 49 | Juanita | 7,848 |
| 50 | Martha | 7,789 |
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the most popular baby name in Oklahoma? ▼
How have baby names changed in Oklahoma over the decades? ▼
How many babies are named in Oklahoma? ▼
What to do with Oklahoma's data
- James (75,761 births) and Mary (56,073 births) are Oklahoma's all-time #1s -- see each name's national profile for how it compares outside Oklahoma. James's profile
- In the 1910s, Oklahoma's top names were James and Mary; by the 2020s the leaders had shifted to Liam and Olivia -- the decade breakdown above shows every step between.
- Curious how Oklahoma compares to another state? Browse the full state directory. All states
Rankings reflect SSA state-level files (1910-2025); names with fewer than 5 occurrences per state per year are suppressed for privacy and excluded from these totals.
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Nearby State Rankings
Compare baby names in Oklahoma with other state-level SSA rankings
Compare Oklahoma's #1 names side by side → or pick any two names →
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files, 1910–2025 (ssa.gov).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
Read our methodology - how this data is sourced, computed, and verified.
According to the Social Security Administration, as of June 2026 this profile draws directly on the agency's state-level public-use files, which document 6,696,687 state-level records across all 51 reporting jurisdictions spanning 1910-2025.
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Most Popular Baby Names in Oklahoma - #1 James & Mary | SSA Data." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/state/ok. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This Oklahoma profile draws directly on SSA state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.