People often name their infants in harmony with the world around them.

The decade of the 1930s was known for hard times and unemployment. One song that said it all was, ?Brother, Can You Spare a Dime.? The stock market crash of 1929 dragged on and left many people penniless.

To get away from it all, people crowded around their radios listening to the best-known comics of the day ? Jack Benny, Gracie Allen, and Fred Allen. In 1934, music producer, Cole Porter, brought the house down with his swinging songs, ?Anything Goes,? and ?You're the Tops.? For a few precious moments, people could forget hunger and worry.

The following year, Cole Porter came out with ?Begin the Beguine,? and ?Just One of Those Things.? Meanwhile, George Gershwin's ?Rhapsody in Blue? made everyone feel like dancing. In the art world, Childe Hassam caught the sunlight and placed it in his paintings for all to see.

The 10 top baby boy names from 1930 to 1939, in order of popularity, were Robert, James, John, William, Richard, Charles, Donald, George, Thomas, and Joseph. They are essentially the same popular names of the 1920s ? with only one change. ?Thomas? took the place of ?Edward.? They are all Christian saints? names. They are also royal names that go back in history for centuries.

Robert (English) means ?brilliant;? James (English) means ?steadfast;? John (Hebrew) means ?honorable;? William (English) means ?staunch protector;? Richard (Germanic) means ?strong ruler;? Charles (German) means ?well-loved;? Donald (Scots Gaelic) means ?world ruler;? George (Greek) means ?loving the land;? Thomas (Greek) means ?twin;? and Joseph (Hebrew) means ?supported by God.?

From 1930 to 1939, the top baby girl names were a big change from the names of the previous decade. New entries included Shirley, Patricia, Joan, and Nancy. Most are powerful biblical names, names of saints and world leaders.

These names, in order of their popularity, are Mary, Betty, Barbara, Shirley, Patricia, Dorothy, Joan, Margaret, Nancy, and Helen.

Mary (Hebrew) means ?spiritual;? Betty (Hebrew) from ?Elizabeth? means ?God-loving;? Barbara (Greek) means ?unusual;? Shirley (English) is derived from a place name meaning ?bright meadow;? Patricia (Latin) means ?of noble birth;? Dorothy (Greek) means ?gift of God;? Joan (Middle English) is the female form of ?John,? meaning ?God-loving;? Margaret (Greek) means ?treasured pearl;? Nancy (Medieval English) is the pet form of ?Agnes,? and means ?generous;? Helen (Greek) means ?beautiful.?

People struggled to make it through the decade of the 1930s. The stock market crash left the whole country shattered. Tens of thousands abandoned farms to move into the city and look for jobs that did not exist.

On the plus side, there was a new president, Franklin Delano Roosevelt, in the White House. A fast sleek car called the ?Pierce Arrow? was all the rage. Artists of the 1930's such as William Graves Sharp and John Singer Sargent produced paintings to lift the heart. Broadway came alive again with the smash musical, ?Over the Rainbow.? Hemingway and Steinbeck were writing masterpieces that have never been matched.

The glorious baby boy names and baby girl names of the 1930s may have helped children weather the storm and dash happily into the fabulous 1940s. Everyone knew the road ahead was filled with sunshine.

(c) Benedict Manovill. All Rights Reserved Worldwide.