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Carolyn

girl name
Origin
French
Syllables
3
Peak era
1940s
Today
▬ Steady

Torn between Carolyn and another name? Compare them side by side →

Meaning

variant of Caroline, the French feminine of Charles (Germanic karl, 'man')

The story

Read the story of Caroline →

More names with stories →

Carolyn across languages

One shared root links 24 names across 7 languages.

Shared root: traditionally linked to Germanic karl, meaning "man"; Latin form Carolus

The constellation

CarolynEnglish · variantCharlesEnglishCarlScandinavianKarlGermanCarloItalianKarolPolishCaroleFrenchCarolinaPortuguese
16 more branches of this family
CharlieEnglish · diminutiveCharleyEnglish · diminutiveCharleeEnglish · variantCarolEnglish · short formCarolineFrench · feminine formKarolineGerman · variantCarolynnEnglish · variantCarrieEnglish · short formCarlaItalian · feminine formCarlyEnglish · diminutiveCarleyEnglish · variantCarlieEnglish · variantCharlotteFrench · feminine formCharletteEnglish · variantCharleneEnglish · feminine formLottieEnglish · diminutive

Ways to honor Charles →

How popular is Carolyn around the world?

In the United States, 1,302 babies were named Carolyn between 2020 and 2025.

Carolyn is on the official records of the United States, Canada, Chile, Spain and Brazil.

United States

1 in 17,000

In the United States, 1,302 babies were named Carolyn between 2020 and 2025.

1890speak 1940s2020s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Carolyn peaked in the 1940s.

Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration

See the full list for the United States →

Canada

1 in 33,000

In Canada, 11 girls named Carolyn were born in 2024, ranked 1,968th among girls that year.

peak 19912024

share of that year’s name registrations

First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)

See the full list for Canada →

Chile

1 in 180,000

In Chile, 1 girl was registered as Carolyn in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.

1940peak 19732021

share of that year’s name registrations

First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021

See the full list for Chile →

Spain

1 in 300,000

In Spain, 152 residents are named Carolyn, ranked 5,516th among women, with a mean age of 50.2 years.

Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025

See the full list for Spain →

Brazil

1 in 1M

At the 2022 census, 165 people in Brazil were named Carolyn, ranked 29,146th, with a median age of 25.
Among people named Carolyn living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.

1980speak 1990s2000s

people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth

People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022

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Argentina

last on record 2013

Carolyn is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.

Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024

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Austria

last on record 2013

Carolyn is not on the 2025 record for Austria, which publishes every first name down to a single birth, so the name was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 6 in a year, too few to chart.

Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)

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England and Wales

last on record 2023

Carolyn is not on the 2025 record for England and Wales, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.

peak 19992025

share of that year’s name registrations

Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales

See the full list for England and Wales →

France

last on record 2007

Carolyn is not on the 2025 record for France, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.

1950peak 19792025

share of that year’s births on record

Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)

See the full list for France →

Ireland

last on record 2012

Carolyn is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.

1964peak 19802025

share of that year’s name registrations

Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names

See the full list for Ireland →

Mexico City City

last on record 2021

Carolyn is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.

Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023

See the full list for Mexico City →

Montevideo City

last on record 2008

Carolyn is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.

Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial

See the full list for Montevideo →

New South Wales

outside the top 100

Carolyn is not in the 2025 top 100 for New South Wales.

peak 19622025

share of that year’s top-100 registrations

New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names

See the full list for New South Wales →

New Zealand

last on record 1988

Carolyn is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.

peak 19492025

share of that year’s name registrations

First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time

See the full list for New Zealand →

Puerto Rico

last on record 2006

Carolyn is not on the 2025 record for Puerto Rico, which withholds births under 5, and 72 babies have carried the name there since 1998.

peak 19982025

share of that year’s births on record

First given name only, from Social Security records of births in Puerto Rico; any name-sex-year under 5 births is withheld at source. Shares divide by the Puerto Rico Demographic Registry’s count of births on the island; the 2025 count is provisional. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, territory name file (Puerto Rico)

See the full list for Puerto Rico →

Scotland

last on record 2012

Carolyn is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.

peak 19782024

share of that year’s name registrations

Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names

See the full list for Scotland →

South Australia

last on record 2011

Carolyn is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.

1944peak 19642017

share of that year’s name registrations

Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names

See the full list for South Australia →

Not on the record in Poland: that registry withholds small counts, so rare uses may sit below its floor.

Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.

All records: the most popular baby names around the world →

When you meet Carolyn

Most people given the name Carolyn in the United States were born between 1940 and 1979. The Carolyn you meet today is most often in her 60s or 70s.

Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.

Names that fit alongside Carolyn

Diane Paulette Renee Suzanne Julie Sherry

The Carolyn deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Carolyn truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Carolyn fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

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