# Carolyn (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/carolyn/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | not recorded |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkɛɹəlɪn/, 3 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Karlyn |
| US babies named this | 558,397 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 1,620 / 556,777 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 150, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

A variant of Caroline with -lyn.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 371 | 742 |
| 2012 | 361 | 765 |
| 2013 | 347 | 785 |
| 2014 | 375 | 747 |
| 2015 | 377 | 748 |
| 2016 | 352 | 809 |
| 2017 | 326 | 833 |
| 2018 | 313 | 866 |
| 2019 | 282 | 936 |
| 2020 | 270 | 947 |
| 2021 | 218 | 1,129 |
| 2022 | 194 | 1,240 |
| 2023 | 228 | 1,085 |
| 2024 | 207 | 1,160 |
| 2025 | 185 | 1,222 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1978 | 10 | 3,639 |
| 1979 | 7 | 4,918 |
| 1980 | 7 | 5,007 |
| 1981 | 10 | 3,890 |
| 1982 | 8 | 4,652 |
| 1983 | 10 | 3,918 |
| 1984 | 9 | 4,256 |
| 1985 | 10 | 4,089 |
| 1986 | 11 | 3,914 |
| 1987 | 11 | 4,003 |
| 1988 | 8 | 5,266 |
| 1989 | 17 | 3,338 |
| 1990 | 9 | 5,438 |
| 1991 | 7 | 6,610 |
| 1995 | 6 | 7,943 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | 4 | 3,725 |
| 2005 | 11 | 1,934 |
| 2006 | 4 | 4,157 |
| 2007 | 3 | 5,201 |
| 2008 | 6 | 3,397 |
| 2009 | 8 | 2,759 |
| 2010 | 6 | 3,533 |
| 2011 | 4 | 4,764 |
| 2013 | 4 | 4,739 |
| 2015 | 3 | 5,730 |
| 2018 | 3 | 5,666 |
| 2020 | 3 | 5,493 |
| 2021 | 4 | 4,634 |
| 2022 | 4 | 4,645 |
| 2023 | 6 | 3,598 |

## In other languages

- Chinese: 卡羅琳 /卡罗琳

## People named Carolyn

- Carolyn Bertozzi, American chemist (born 1966)
- Carolyn S. Shoemaker, American astronomer, researcher and university teacher
- Carolyn Porco, American planetary scientist
- Carolyn Jones, American actress (1930–1983)
- Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy, American publicist and socialite (1966–1999)
- Carolyn Schuler, American swimmer (1943–2024)
- Carolyn Waldo, Canadian synchronized swimmer
- Carolyn Lawrence, American voice actress
- Carolyn Murphy, American model
- Carolyn Goodman, American politician
- Carolyn McCarthy, American politician (1944–2025)
- Carolyn Hennesy, American actress

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.