Following from the statistics I compiled for the Top 200 names in 1900 and the Top 200 names in 1890, I have finally finished compiling the rankings for the most popular births in England and Wales in 1880 from the original scanned pages of the England & Wales, FreeBMD Birth Index, 1837-1915.
Disclaimer: It should be noted that the data is not without its flaws. Births were originally recorded by a registrar (in their own handwriting) which were later typed up into the register. Some names are invariably recorded incorrectly and it is impossible to know where the mistake was made. Also, I have been compiling the ranks myself, and while I have endeavored to record the number of names as accuarely as possible I am also liable to human error. This, however, should not affect the rankings very much overall.
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The Top 200 names in England and Wales in 1880:
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| William |
| John |
| George |
| Thomas |
| James |
| Charles |
| Arthur |
| Henry |
| Frederick |
| Joseph |
| Albert |
| Alfred |
| Ernest |
| Robert |
| Walter |
| Edward |
| Herbert |
| Harry |
| Frank |
| Richard |
| Samuel |
| David |
| Fred |
| Francis |
| Percy |
| Edwin |
| Benjamin |
| Sidney |
| Harold |
| Tom |
| Sydney |
| Leonard |
| Daniel |
| Edgar |
| Horace |
| Peter |
| Alexander |
| Isaac |
| Reginald |
| Willie |
| Hugh |
| Stephen |
| Philip |
| Michael |
| Matthew |
| Bertie |
| Christopher |
| Edmund |
| Lewis |
| Ralph |
| Patrick |
| Andrew |
| Archibald |
| Wilfred |
| Evan |
| Jesse |
| Louis |
| Cecil |
| Stanley |
| Mark |
| Bertram |
| Sam |
| Percival |
| Hubert |
| Owen |
| Bernard |
| Abraham |
| Oliver |
| Reuben |
| Frederic |
| Gilbert |
| Joe |
| Norman |
| Jonathan |
| Martin |
| Joshua |
| Wilfrid |
| Lawrence |
| Charlie |
| Victor |
| Maurice |
| Cyril |
| Eli |
| Josiah |
| Jacob |
| Amos |
| Rowland |
| Anthony |
| Enoch |
| Arnold |
| Elijah |
| Howard |
| Cornelius |
| Augustus |
| Lionel |
| Douglas |
| Nicholas |
| Wallace |
| Timothy |
| Allen |
| Clement |
| Moses |
| Ben |
| Griffith |
| Levi |
| Job |
| Adam |
| Charley |
| Ellis |
| Clifford |
| Roland |
| Oswald |
| Gerald |
| Morris |
| Paul |
| Claud |
| Clarence |
| Oscar |
| Aaron |
| Claude |
| Ebenezer |
| Ambrose |
| Donald |
| Rupert |
| Vincent |
| Jeremiah |
| Rees |
| Allan |
| Dennis |
| Nathan |
| Luke |
| Llewellyn |
| Elias |
| Laurence |
| Solomon |
| Morgan |
| Nathaniel |
| Jabez |
| Austin |
| Roger |
| Simon |
| Noah |
| Montague |
| Raymond |
| Emmanuel |
| Cuthbert |
| Ivor |
| Ephraim |
| Theodore |
| Jim |
| Harvey |
| Alan |
| Abel |
| Isaiah |
| Vernon |
| Septimus |
| Kenneth |
| Leslie |
| Wilson |
| Aubrey |
| Archie |
| Denis |
| Lancelot |
| Ronald |
| Nelson |
| Basil |
| Caleb |
| Seth |
| Algernon |
| Geoffrey |
| Guy |
| Humphrey |
| Leopold |
| Miles |
| Phillip |
| Simeon |
| Godfrey |
| Luther |
| Valentine |
| Malcolm |
| Eric |
| Israel |
| Ezra |
| Felix |
| Jonas |
| Eugene |
| Hedley |
| Silas |
| Theophilus |
| Horatio |
| Willis |
| Ethelbert |
| Colin |
| Emanuel |
| Gwilym |
| Spencer |
| Vivian |
| Harrison |
| Jonah |
| Sampson |
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| 141 |
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| 144 |
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| 200 |
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| Mary |
| Elizabeth |
| Alice |
| Sarah |
| Annie |
| Florence |
| Edith |
| Margaret |
| Ellen |
| Emily |
| Ada |
| Jane |
| Ethel |
| Emma |
| Eliza |
| Ann |
| Louisa |
| Martha |
| Clara |
| Hannah |
| Catherine |
| Gertrude |
| Harriet |
| Kate |
| Agnes |
| Rose |
| Beatrice |
| Maud |
| Lily |
| Mabel |
| Frances |
| Minnie |
| Lilian |
| Amy |
| Charlotte |
| Lucy |
| Fanny |
| Jessie |
| Eleanor |
| Caroline |
| Bertha |
| Maria |
| Isabella |
| Laura |
| Esther |
| Nellie |
| Amelia |
| May |
| Grace |
| Eva |
| Lizzie |
| Rosa |
| Ruth |
| Anne |
| Susan |
| Bessie |
| Rachel |
| Winifred |
| Matilda |
| Julia |
| Rosina |
| Susannah |
| Rebecca |
| Lydia |
| Helen |
| Elsie |
| Daisy |
| Violet |
| Henrietta |
| Flora |
| Hilda |
| Selina |
| Dorothy |
| Phoebe |
| Sophia |
| Dora |
| Janet |
| Lillie |
| Betsy |
| Eveline |
| Isabel |
| Harriett |
| Olive |
| Blanche |
| Nelly |
| Lilly |
| Georgina |
| Constance |
| Anna |
| Marion |
| Rhoda |
| Maggie |
| Ida |
| Helena |
| Louise |
| Miriam |
| Evelyn |
| Bridget |
| Marian |
| Leah |
| Adelaide |
| Lavinia |
| Priscilla |
| Rosanna |
| Rosetta |
| Mildred |
| Kathleen |
| Nora |
| Catharine |
| Ella |
| Theresa |
| Maude |
| Nancy |
| Lillian |
| Cecilia |
| Susanna |
| Barbara |
| Millicent |
| Lottie |
| Christina |
| Polly |
| Katie |
| Blanch |
| Katherine |
| Norah |
| Christiana |
| Hetty |
| Muriel |
| Letitia |
| Adeline |
| Alma |
| Emmeline |
| Marie |
| Gladys |
| Jemima |
| Lena |
| Carrie |
| Jenny |
| Phillis |
| Johanna |
| Florry |
| Josephine |
| Madeline |
| Dinah |
| Mercy |
| Thirza |
| Augusta |
| Florrie |
| Effie |
| Lois |
| Hester |
| Celia |
| Irene |
| Margaretta |
| Myra |
| Edna |
| Teresa |
| Ruby |
| Lotty |
| Georgiana |
| Naomi |
| Cicely |
| Katharine |
| Marguerite |
| Prudence |
| Jennie |
| Eunice |
| Clarissa |
| Victoria |
| Gwendoline |
| Lizzy |
| Leonora |
| Phebe |
| Eda |
| Margery |
| Deborah |
| Honora |
| Gwenllian |
| Sylvia |
| Ivy |
| Betty |
| Louie |
| Sybil |
| Dorothea |
| Clarice |
| Alberta |
| Linda |
| Wilhelmina |
| Kezia |
| Dorcas |
| Sabina |
| Angelina |
| Evelina |
| Christine |
| Abigail |
| Violetta |
| Florie |
| Betsey |
| Hephzibah |
| Faith |
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Statistics compiled by Eleanor Nickerson at britishbabynames.com
No unauthorised copying without credit or permission.
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The #1 names for boys and girls remain the same for 1900, 1890 and 1880: William and Mary. What is different is the declining number of children given these names over that time period:
William
1880 - 50,525 births
1890 - 45,925 births
1900 - 44,912 births
Mary
1880 - 39,612 births
1890 - 27,802 births
1900 - 22,194 births
Compare that to the 8,427 boys named Oliver and 5,297 girls named Olivia in 2010 and we can see how our concept of "popular" no longer means what it once did.
The most marked difference between 1880 and 1890 can be found in the name Doris which we can clearly see was an "it" name in the 1890s. It was #3 in 1904, #10 in 1900 (11,354 births), #76 in 1890 (863 births) but wasn't even in the Top 300 in 1880 with only 12 births.
For boys, Jack and Gordon — #87 and #96 in 1890 — also did not rank in the Top 200 in 1880.
