How popular is the baby name Phyllis in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Phyllis.

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Popularity of the baby name Phyllis


Posts that mention the name Phyllis

Where did the baby name Corky come from in 1928?

The characters Walt and Corky Wallet from the comic strip "Gasoline Alley" (June 1928)
Walt and baby Corky

The curious name Corky first appeared in the U.S. baby name data in the late 1920s:

  • 1930: unlisted
  • 1929: 8 baby boys (and 5 baby girls) named Corky
  • 1928: 7 baby boys named Corky [debut]
  • 1927: unlisted
  • 1926: unlisted

Where did it come from?

The funny pages!

Walt and Phyllis Wallet of the comic strip Gasoline Alley welcomed a baby boy in early May, 1928.

Soon after his birth, the couple started brainstorming for names. Over the course of the next few weeks, they settled on Corkleigh — Phyllis’ maiden name — as the baby’s legal name, and Corky as his nickname.

Notably, Gasoline Alley was one of the first comic strips in which the characters aged over time. In the 1940s, Corky’s older brother Skeezix (whose real first name was Allison) welcomed his own children, Chipper and Clovia, both of whom also influenced U.S. baby names.

The name Corky has never been very popular, but it did see more usage in the 1950s than in any other decade — possibly because of the 1951 films Gasoline Alley and Corky of Gasoline Alley. In both movies, Corky was played by actor Scotty Beckett (who, several years earlier, had appeared in A Date with Judy with Jane Powell).

What are your thoughts on Corky as a baby name?

Sources:

Image: Clipped from the St. Joseph Gazette (4 Jun. 1928)

[Latest update: Apr. 2024]

Gaiety Girl names: Gertie, Gaby, Ellaline

English actress Lily Elsie (1886-1962)
Lily Elsie

Before there were Follies girls, there were Gaiety Girls.

The Gaiety Girls were showgirls who appeared in Edwardian musical comedies at London’s Gaiety Theatre during the 1890s.

English actress Gabrielle Ray (1883-1973)
Gabrielle Ray

There’s no definitive list of all the Gaiety Girls, but here are the stage names (and birth names) of several dozen of them:

Stage NameBirth Name
Alice DelysiaAlice Lapize
Billie CarletonFlorence Stewart
Blanche MasseyBlanch Massey
Camille CliffordCamilla Clifford
Cicely CourtneidgeEsmerelda Cicely Courtneidge
Connie GilchristConstance Gilchrist
Constance CollierLaura Constance Hardie
Denise OrmeJessie Smither
Dorothy MintoDorothy Scott
Eleanor “Nellie” SourayEllen Mary Souray
Ellaline TerrissMary Ellaline Terriss
Evelyn LayeElsie Evelyn Lay
Florence SmithsonFlorence Smithson
Gaby DeslysMarie-Elise-Gabrielle Caire
Gabrielle RayGabrielle Cook
Gertie MillarGertrude Millar
Gina PalermeMarie Louise Irène de Maulmont
Gladys CooperGladys Cooper
Irene Desmond(unknown)
Irene Richards(unknown)
Jessie Matthews(unknown)
José CollinsCharlotte Josephine Collins
Kitty GordonConstance Blades
Lily ElsieElsie Hodder
Mabel LoveMabel Watson
Mabel RussellMabel Russell
Mamie Watson(unknown)
Marie StudholmeCaroline Maria Lupton
May EtheridgeMay Etheridge
May Gates(unknown)
Moya NugentMoya Nugent
Olive MayOlive Mary Meatyard
Phyllis DarePhyllis Constance Haddie Dones (sister of Zena)
Rosie BooteRose Boote
Sylvia GreySylvia Grey
Sylvia StoreySylvia Storey
Zena DareFlorence Hariette Zena Dones (sister of Phyllis)

Which of the above names do you like best?

Sources: Gaiety Girls – Wikipedia, Gaiety Girls exhibition – National Portrait Gallery

NYC baby named Adolf Hitler, promptly renamed

Baby Mittel -- initially named Adolf Hitler, then renamed Theodore Roosevelt -- born in Queens in Jan. 1943.
Joseph, Bertha, and their baby boy

In January of 1943, Joseph and Bertha Mittel of Astoria, Queens, welcomed their seventh child — a baby boy.

What did they decide to name him? Adolf Hitler Mittel.

Joseph said that “the whole thing started as a joke. Before the baby was born, I bet my wife that she would have triplets and that if she didn’t I’d name the baby Adolf Hitler. And I did.”

Bertha didn’t care for the name, “but [she] named the other kids and [she] thought he ought to have his say this once.”

Adolf Hitler Mittel became front-page news across the country. Here’s some of what Joseph told the press:

“Yes, sir, the baby’s name is Adolf Hitler and it’s not a joke.” declared the father, an unemployed woodworker.

“The real Adolf Hitler doesn’t mean anything to me, but I’m of German-Austrian descent and that’s one reason why I picked the name. I don’t think the name will be a handicap, because after all there are lots of people named after persons in the same class as Hitler, such as Napoleon, Caesar and others.

“He’ll grow up and be a good man despite the name.”

Needless to say, the public was not supportive.

And, almost immediately, Joseph announced that he was willing to change it. “I certainly don’t want to hurt the little guy’s future. Judging from the riding the papers and the public are giving us, the only thing to do is to find him another name.”

That new name? Theodore Roosevelt Mittel.

Mother Mittel said she always liked the name Theodore; Father Mittel said he always admired Theodore Roosevelt.

Dr. Ernest L. Stebbins, New York City’s Commissioner of Health at the time, called the name change a “humanitarian move.”

P.S. According to the 1950 U.S. Census, Theodore’s older siblings were named Joseph, Bertha, Patricia, Fredrick, Marilyn, and Marlene. He also had at least two younger sisters, Jacquelyn and Phyllis.

Sources:

Image: Clipping from the Sarasota Herald-Tribune (11 Feb. 1943)

[Latest update: Feb. 2026]

Which “Mod Generation” sticker name do you like best?

mod generation stickers

In 1969, dozens of “Mod Generation” stickers — each of which featured a drawing of a young person, and a first name — were distributed inside packs of Topps chewing gum.

Female names used on the stickers included Alice, Ann, Barbara, Betty, Connie, Diane, Donna, Dotty, Ellen, Esther, Fay, Frances, Gloria, Helen, Jackie, Joan, Judy, Lois, Marie, Mary, Millie, Minda, Nancy, Natalie, Phyllis, Rose, Shelly, and Susan.

mod generation stickers

Male names used on the stickers included Barry, Bert, Bill, Charlie, Chris, Dave, Don, Fred, George, Herb, Irv, Jerry, Joe, John, Larry, Louis, Michael, Paul, Pete, Ray, Richard, Roy, Teddy, and Tony.

mod generation stickers

While of these female and male names do you like most? How about least?

Sources: 1969: “Mod Generation” Stickers, Mod Generation – 1969