Meaning and history
Karel is the Czech, Dutch, Slovenian, and Afrikaans form of Charles. Charles derives from a Germanic word meaning “man” or “free man.” The name has extensive royal and imperial history through figures such as Charlemagne and European kings named Charles or Karel. Notable bearers include Czech writer Karel Čapek, who introduced the word robot through his play R.U.R., and Dutch abstract painter Karel Appel. Regional pronunciation varies considerably.
20062006: 12 births, rank #6,460
2007: no US SSA record for this spelling
2008: 9 births, rank #8,324
2009: 17 births, rank #5,334
2010: 9 births, rank #8,139
20112011: no US SSA record for this spelling
2012: 10 births, rank #7,559
2013: 7 births, rank #9,655
2014: 5 births, rank #12,108
2015: 7 births, rank #9,568
20162016: 8 births, rank #8,816
2017: 5 births, rank #12,246
2018: 5 births, rank #12,156
2019: 11 births, rank #7,173
2020: 5 births, rank #12,022
20212021: 6 births, rank #10,799
2022: 13 births, rank #6,479
2023: 22 births, rank #4,610
2024: 8 births, rank #8,987
20252025: 5 births, rank #12,008
In 2025, 5 babies were recorded with the name Karel, ranking #12,008 among boys.