Carla
Carla was the 1083rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 223 babies. Its best year was 1965, when it ranked 76th; the most babies were born in 1962 (5,820). Over the last ten years it has moved down 208 places. More babies were named Carla in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Meaning feminine of Carl (Charles) · German, Italian, Germanic
Say it KAR-luh /ˈkɑɹlə/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,083 girls, down 59 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 223girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19625,820 babies
- Total since 1880
- 150,815babies recorded
What does the name Carla mean?
Carla is the German and Italian feminine of Carl and Carlo (Charles), as Wiktionary and DMNES note. Charles comes from Germanic karl 'man, free man'. DMNES notes that medieval Carla was rare, and that diminutives such as Charlotte were far more common than the plain form. Carla became popular in the US in the 1960s.
karl (Old High German, “man, free man”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Charlotte, Caroline, Carol, Karla, Carlos.
See also: Germanic names.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Carla', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Carla', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
Nicknames for Carla
The usual nicknames for Carla are Carly. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Carla in the last five years, 138 were named Carly, against 268 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Carly | Traditional | #1,009 | 1,730 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Carlas go by each one.
Carla popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 425 since 1946.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,083 | 223 |
| 2020 | #1,024 | 245 |
| 2010 | #753 | 368 |
| 2000 | #404 | 707 |
| 1990 | #263 | 1,092 |
| 1980 | #152 | 1,833 |
| 1970 | #94 | 4,214 |
| 1960 | #110 | 4,375 |
| 1950 | #160 | 1,753 |
| 1940 | #299 | 440 |
| 1930 | #551 | 153 |
| 1920 | #1,630 | 26 |
| 1910 | #1,794 | 8 |
| 1900 | #1,971 | 5 |
| 1890 | #1,358 | 5 |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Carla, counting every spelling?
Carla has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #1,036 for girls in 2025, against #1,083 on the official list.
How many kids will share the name Carla?
223 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Carla (0.06 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Carla born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 38 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Carla.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Carla?
About 129,600 people born in the US named Carla are alive today, with a median age of 58; half are between 46 and 66. That makes Carla a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Carla by state
How common Carla was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Arizona (2.0×), Florida (1.8×), Texas (1.7×), California (1.6×). In 27 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Carla: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Carla, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Carla · Sibling names for Carla
Questions about the name Carla
What does Carla mean?
Carla means “feminine of Carl (Charles)” (German, Italian, Germanic origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Carla?
Carla was the 1083rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 223 babies. Its best year was 1965, when it ranked 76th; the most babies were born in 1962 (5,820). Over the last ten years it has moved down 208 places. More babies were named Carla in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Is Carla a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Carla in the US.
Where is Carla most popular?
In 2021–2025, Carla was most common in Arizona (0.31 per 1,000 girls), followed by Florida and Texas.