This list combines 1,581 spelling variations into 1,003 grouped names based on shared pronunciations. The most popular name in 1896 is Mary, given to 13,875 babies in total. Learn more about how this works.

Catherine has the most spelling variations with 12 different spellings, while Selena has the highest confusion index at 76.2%, indicating the greatest diversity in how parents choose to spell it.

When combining spelling variations, Janet showed the biggest improvement, moving up 101 positions from 264 to 163, while Alexander had the largest drop, falling 13 positions from 229 to 242.

Looking at trends, Thelma shows the strongest upward momentum (births in 1894–1896 are 777.37% higher compared to 1887–1896), while Grover shows the steepest decline (76.55% lower). Compared to 1895, Hobert had the largest rank improvement, moving up 126 positions to rank #264, while Emmett fell 42 positions to rank #280.