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Worldwide Name Statistics

Carolyn

Ranked #176 - 1 in 28,745 people
US

Most common in

United States

278k bearers

World total

278,314

estimated living bearers

Global rank

#176

worldwide

Country breakdown

United States278k
Worldwide
~278k
rank #176
Rarity
1 in 28,745
of people globally
Gender split
0/100
male / female %
Countries covered
1
~278k in US

About the name Carolyn

There are an estimated 278,314 people named Carolyn alive worldwide today. That ranks Carolyn at #176 globally, with the highest concentrations in United States.

In the United States, Carolyn is held by approximately 278,314 people, ranking #176 among first names. That works out to roughly 84 per 100,000 Americans (or 1 in 1,193 U.S. residents).

Historically Carolyn is used overwhelmingly as a female name (99.7% female).

Carolyn appears in birth records going back to 1880. Use the chart below to see how its popularity has changed across decades, and the surname section to find common pairings.

Gender distribution

Based on historical birth records, this name is used predominantly female.

Male 0.3%Female 99.7%

Carolyn popularity by year

U.S. births per year for Carolyn, 1880 to 2025 (source: SSA name files).

Show data table
  1. 1880: 80
  2. 1881: 60
  3. 1882: 62
  4. 1883: 58
  5. 1884: 75
  6. 1885: 86
  7. 1886: 82
  8. 1887: 97
  9. 1888: 123
  10. 1889: 133
  11. 1890: 124
  12. 1891: 110
  13. 1892: 122
  14. 1893: 146
  15. 1894: 147
  16. 1895: 148
  17. 1896: 149
  18. 1897: 145
  19. 1898: 169
  20. 1899: 141
  21. 1900: 185
  22. 1901: 148
  23. 1902: 179
  24. 1903: 157
  25. 1904: 183
  26. 1905: 210
  27. 1906: 184
  28. 1907: 184
  29. 1908: 280
  30. 1909: 299
  31. 1910: 331
  32. 1911: 387
  33. 1912: 517
  34. 1913: 676
  35. 1914: 835
  36. 1915: 1,106
  37. 1916: 1,216
  38. 1917: 1,228
  39. 1918: 1,329
  40. 1919: 1,330
  41. 1920: 1,556
  42. 1921: 1,753
  43. 1922: 1,706
  44. 1923: 2,017
  45. 1924: 2,227
  46. 1925: 2,198
  47. 1926: 2,415
  48. 1927: 2,814
  49. 1928: 2,856
  50. 1929: 3,282
  51. 1930: 3,745
  52. 1931: 4,025
  53. 1932: 4,601
  54. 1933: 5,062
  55. 1934: 6,494
  56. 1935: 6,990
  57. 1936: 7,936
  58. 1937: 8,985
  59. 1938: 11k
  60. 1939: 11k
  61. 1940: 13k
  62. 1941: 16k
  63. 1942: 20k
  64. 1943: 20k
  65. 1944: 19k
  66. 1945: 17k
  67. 1946: 20k
  68. 1947: 21k
  69. 1948: 19k
  70. 1949: 17k
  71. 1950: 16k
  72. 1951: 15k
  73. 1952: 14k
  74. 1953: 13k
  75. 1954: 12k
  76. 1955: 11k
  77. 1956: 11k
  78. 1957: 12k
  79. 1958: 11k
  80. 1959: 9,760
  81. 1960: 9,428
  82. 1961: 11k
  83. 1962: 9,720
  84. 1963: 8,156
  85. 1964: 8,092
  86. 1965: 6,987
  87. 1966: 6,141
  88. 1967: 5,745
  89. 1968: 5,554
  90. 1969: 5,146
  91. 1970: 4,531
  92. 1971: 3,616
  93. 1972: 3,005
  94. 1973: 2,580
  95. 1974: 2,479
  96. 1975: 2,353
  97. 1976: 2,121
  98. 1977: 2,208
  99. 1978: 2,186
  100. 1979: 2,060
  101. 1980: 1,935
  102. 1981: 1,968
  103. 1982: 2,017
  104. 1983: 1,924
  105. 1984: 1,834
  106. 1985: 1,847
  107. 1986: 1,744
  108. 1987: 1,824
  109. 1988: 1,810
  110. 1989: 1,826
  111. 1990: 1,723
  112. 1991: 1,566
  113. 1992: 1,518
  114. 1993: 1,479
  115. 1994: 1,230
  116. 1995: 1,181
  117. 1996: 1,210
  118. 1997: 1,061
  119. 1998: 901
  120. 1999: 1,037
  121. 2000: 1,031
  122. 2001: 870
  123. 2002: 822
  124. 2003: 701
  125. 2004: 731
  126. 2005: 626
  127. 2006: 587
  128. 2007: 495
  129. 2008: 448
  130. 2009: 426
  131. 2010: 378
  132. 2011: 371
  133. 2012: 361
  134. 2013: 347
  135. 2014: 375
  136. 2015: 377
  137. 2016: 352
  138. 2017: 326
  139. 2018: 313
  140. 2019: 282
  141. 2020: 270
  142. 2021: 218
  143. 2022: 194
  144. 2023: 228
  145. 2024: 207
  146. 2025: 185

Frequently asked questions

How many people are named Carolyn worldwide?

There are an estimated 278,314 people named Carolyn alive worldwide today, ranking #176 globally.

Is Carolyn a rare name?

Worldwide that works out to about 1 in 28,745 people. In the United States there are roughly 278,314 bearers, which is 1 in 1,193 Americans.

Is Carolyn a boy or girl name?

Based on historical birth records, Carolyn is used 0.3% male and 99.7% female.

Where does the name Carolyn come from?

Who are famous people named Carolyn?

Data sources

Every figure on this page is cited. See the methodology page for the full picture.

Last updated:

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