Meaning and history
Charles is the French and English form of Carolus, the Latin version of the Germanic name Karl, usually traced to Proto-Germanic * karlaz meaning “man,” though an alternative theory links it to * harjaz meaning “army.” Its widespread use in continental Europe came from the fame of Charlemagne (742–814), the Frankish king Charles the Great, and his grandfather Charles Martel, and it later belonged to several Holy Roman emperors and rulers of France, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, and Hungary. After Charlemagne, the name also became a word for “king” in several Eastern European languages, including Czech král, Hungarian király, Russian король (korol), and Turkish kral. In Britain, it became common only in the 17th century through Charles I, having entered the Stuart royal family via Mary Queen of Scots, who had been raised in France; two other kings of the United Kingdom have since borne the name, including the current monarch. Notable bearers also include Charles Darwin, Charles Dickens, Charles de Gaulle, and Charles Schulz.
20062006: 8,013 births, rank #60
2007: 7,452 births, rank #62
2008: 7,288 births, rank #63
2009: 7,284 births, rank #64
2010: 7,106 births, rank #63
20112011: 6,987 births, rank #61
2012: 6,947 births, rank #62
2013: 7,025 births, rank #57
2014: 7,362 births, rank #51
2015: 7,204 births, rank #50
20162016: 7,127 births, rank #52
2017: 7,193 births, rank #48
2018: 6,667 births, rank #53
2019: 6,406 births, rank #52
2020: 6,249 births, rank #46
20212021: 6,010 births, rank #50
2022: 5,934 births, rank #50
2023: 5,421 births, rank #54
2024: 5,613 births, rank #51
20252025: 5,898 births, rank #48
Charles has unusual staying power. It appears in the US records as early as 1880 and still ranks #48 for boys in 2025. Its highest annual birth count came in 1947, with 40,781 births.