Carl
The Germanic karl, “free man”: Carl directly, Carol as the English feminine of Charles through Latin Carolus.
Popularity, 1880–2025
Carl appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American boys in every year from 1880 to 1979. Its biggest year was 1956, when 8,313 newborn boys received the name, ranking it No. 48 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1894, at No. 22. All told, 508,017 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Carol (825,584), Carole (110,952), Karl (101,751), Carroll (41,347), Karol (11,131), Carrol (10,319) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: Charles, Carol, Carole
Explore Carl interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 5,227 | No. 27 |
| 1890s | 8,047 | No. 22 |
| 1900s | 9,865 | No. 23 |
| 1910s | 48,454 | No. 22 |
| 1920s | 69,851 | No. 26 |
| 1930s | 66,759 | No. 26 |
| 1940s | 72,739 | No. 29 |
| 1950s | 78,752 | No. 43 |
| 1960s | 60,787 | No. 53 |
| 1970s | 31,370 | No. 66 |
| 1980s | 25,472 | No. 103 |
| 1990s | 14,693 | No. 145 |
| 2000s | 7,198 | No. 304 |
| 2010s | 4,225 | No. 536 |
| 2020s | 1,388 | No. 812 |
Births and rank shown for boys, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.