Carolyn

#1,222 for girls in 2025, 185 births · Last seen for boys in 1995 at #7,792
Given to girls 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1942 · 19,978 births
Debut · girls
80 births
In top 100 · girls
44 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
556,777
since 1880

Carolyn over time

girls

Rank among girls' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201960peak #10, 1942girls
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#1,222185—
2024#1,160207—
2023#1,085228—
2022#1,239194—
2021#1,129218—
2020#947270—
2019#936282—
2018#865313—
2017#832326—
2016#808352—
2015#748377—
2014#746375—
2013#784347—
2012#765361—
2011#742371—
2010#736378—
2009#683426—
2008#678448—
2007#606495—
2006#517587—
2005#488626—
2004#417731—
2003#430701—
2002#365822—
2001#346870—
2000#3081,031—
1999#2971,037—
1998#327901—
1997#2761,061—
1996#2331,210—
1995#2421,175#7,7926
1994#2301,230—
1993#2001,479—
1992#1961,518—
1991#1931,559#6,5197
1990#1691,714#5,3829
1989#1581,809#3,32517
1988#1581,802#5,2008
1987#1491,813#3,95911
1986#1621,733#3,88211
1985#1551,837#4,05210
1984#1551,825#4,2159
1983#1501,914#3,88410
1982#1462,009#4,5938
1981#1441,958#3,85810
1980#1471,928#4,9407
1979#1382,053#4,8427
1978#1302,176#3,61410
1977#1292,197#3,38611
1976#1292,115#4,9356
1975#1192,346#4,3097
1974#1182,471#3,8378
1973#1162,569#3,01311
1972#1102,992#2,65913
1971#1043,609#3,9637
1970#844,518#2,62113
1969#715,129#2,04617
1968#615,538#2,03016
1967#605,719#1,50726
1966#606,121#1,72320
1965#586,965#1,66922
1964#568,066#1,54526
1963#568,124#1,37532
1962#469,692#1,47928
1961#4210,509#1,60225
1960#439,403#1,61925
1959#429,727#1,36033
1958#3710,814#1,37032
1957#3311,575#1,58325
1956#3310,634#1,36232
1955#3011,179#1,37031
1954#2712,153#1,38230
1953#2512,919#1,37830
1952#2414,272#1,19538
1951#2215,206#1,24235
1950#2015,588#1,46425
1949#1717,404#1,34829
1948#1418,623#1,12740
1947#1520,742#1,06446
1946#1219,902#98047
1945#1217,244#89950
1944#1118,670#74569
1943#1120,365#74076
1942#1019,978#83960
1941#1116,273#81760
1940#1512,657#93946
1939#1411,290#99241
1938#1510,586#1,00940
1937#208,941#94244
1936#237,906#1,20530
1935#286,967#1,42223
1934#336,472#1,46122
1933#405,043#1,58619
1932#464,587#1,99514
1931#604,008#1,77017
1930#723,725#1,64420
1929#773,272#2,58910
1928#912,847#2,8439
1927#992,806#3,1518
1926#1142,415—
1925#1272,189#2,9369
1924#1272,222#4,3475
1923#1322,010#3,4677
1922#1441,706—
1921#1461,753—
1920#1501,556—
1919#1651,330—
1918#1671,329—
1917#1641,223#3,9815
1916#1631,216—
1915#1681,096#2,45810
1914#169835—
1913#170676—
1912#189517—
1911#185387—
1910#199331—
1909#194299—
1908#200280—
1907#254184—
1906#235184—
1905#213210—
1904#227183—
1903#241157—
1902#224179—
1901#237148—
1900#231185—
1899#231141—
1898#225169—
1897#227145—
1896#227149—
1895#227148—
1894#219147—
1893#211146—
1892#239122—
1891#230110—
1890#217124—
1889#199133—
1888#203123—
1887#20897—
1886#22282—
1885#20886—
1884#21875—
1883#23458—
1882#21762—
1881#19560—
1880#16380—
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Carolyn was already there! It came in at #163, and was given to 80 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1880–1886, when fewer than 87 girls a year got the name.

Where Carolyn is popular in 1960

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #55 for girls · 14 births · 1 in 186 girlsAKMaine: #100 for girls · 26 births · 1 in 382 girlsMEVermont: #85 for girls · 12 births · 1 in 300 girlsVTNew Hampshire: #76 for girls · 19 births · 1 in 289 girlsNHWashington: #70 for girls · 102 births · 1 in 277 girlsWAIdaho: #84 for girls · 21 births · 1 in 306 girlsIDMontana: #100 for girls · 19 births · 1 in 352 girlsMTNorth Dakota: #97 for girls · 18 births · 1 in 368 girlsNDMinnesota: #87 for girls · 109 births · 1 in 355 girlsMNIllinois: #59 for girls · 440 births · 1 in 245 girlsILWisconsin: #98 for girls · 108 births · 1 in 416 girlsWIMichigan: #65 for girls · 328 births · 1 in 269 girlsMINew York: #61 for girls · 651 births · 1 in 258 girlsNYMassachusetts: #67 for girls · 192 births · 1 in 275 girlsMARhode Island: #73 for girls · 27 births · 1 in 303 girlsRIOregon: #61 for girls · 65 births · 1 in 249 girlsORNevada: #115 for girls · 6 births · 1 in 388 girlsNVWyoming: #93 for girls · 10 births · 1 in 290 girlsWYSouth Dakota: #127 for girls · 14 births · 1 in 505 girlsSDIowa: #107 for girls · 65 births · 1 in 433 girlsIAIndiana: #63 for girls · 205 births · 1 in 246 girlsINOhio: #61 for girls · 433 births · 1 in 243 girlsOHPennsylvania: #77 for girls · 365 births · 1 in 306 girlsPANew Jersey: #56 for girls · 247 births · 1 in 234 girlsNJConnecticut: #63 for girls · 103 births · 1 in 239 girlsCTCalifornia: #52 for girls · 697 births · 1 in 248 girlsCAUtah: #50 for girls · 58 births · 1 in 184 girlsUTColorado: #64 for girls · 70 births · 1 in 279 girlsCONebraska: #65 for girls · 52 births · 1 in 278 girlsNEMissouri: #51 for girls · 227 births · 1 in 197 girlsMOKentucky: #34 for girls · 236 births · 1 in 136 girlsKYWest Virginia: #33 for girls · 130 births · 1 in 134 girlsWVVirginia: #26 for girls · 339 births · 1 in 117 girlsVAMaryland: #42 for girls · 172 births · 1 in 175 girlsMDDelaware: #37 for girls · 30 births · 1 in 152 girlsDEArizona: #55 for girls · 67 births · 1 in 226 girlsAZNew Mexico: #87 for girls · 39 births · 1 in 317 girlsNMKansas: #75 for girls · 71 births · 1 in 296 girlsKSArkansas: #20 for girls · 185 births · 1 in 96 girlsARTennessee: #29 for girls · 279 births · 1 in 130 girlsTNNorth Carolina: #26 for girls · 400 births · 1 in 121 girlsNCSouth Carolina: #25 for girls · 237 births · 1 in 110 girlsSCDistrict of Columbia: #32 for girls · 107 births · 1 in 123 girlsDCOklahoma: #36 for girls · 146 births · 1 in 144 girlsOKLouisiana: #20 for girls · 343 births · 1 in 113 girlsLAMississippi: #18 for girls · 258 births · 1 in 98 girlsMSAlabama: #22 for girls · 303 births · 1 in 115 girlsALGeorgia: #30 for girls · 327 births · 1 in 136 girlsGAHawaii: #58 for girls · 27 births · 1 in 222 girlsHITexas: #33 for girls · 675 births · 1 in 168 girlsTXFlorida: #31 for girls · 329 births · 1 in 153 girlsFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · girls
  1. Mississippi#18 · 1 in 98
  2. Arkansas#20 · 1 in 96
  3. Louisiana#20 · 1 in 113
  4. Alabama#22 · 1 in 115
  5. South Carolina#25 · 1 in 110

Best ever in a state: #4 in Oklahoma, 1942.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Mississippi#182581 in 98
Arkansas#201851 in 96
Louisiana#203431 in 113
Alabama#223031 in 115
South Carolina#252371 in 110
North Carolina#264001 in 121
Virginia#263391 in 117
Tennessee#292791 in 130
Georgia#303271 in 136
Florida#313291 in 153
District of Columbia#321071 in 123
Texas#336751 in 168
West Virginia#331301 in 134
Kentucky#342361 in 136
Oklahoma#361461 in 144
Delaware#37301 in 152
Maryland#421721 in 175
Utah#50581 in 184
Missouri#512271 in 197
California#526971 in 248
Alaska#55141 in 186
Arizona#55671 in 226
New Jersey#562471 in 234
Hawaii#58271 in 222
Illinois#594401 in 245
New York#616511 in 258
Ohio#614331 in 243
Oregon#61651 in 249
Connecticut#631031 in 239
Indiana#632051 in 246
Colorado#64701 in 279
Michigan#653281 in 269
Nebraska#65521 in 278
Massachusetts#671921 in 275
Washington#701021 in 277
Rhode Island#73271 in 303
Kansas#75711 in 296
New Hampshire#76191 in 289
Pennsylvania#773651 in 306
Idaho#84211 in 306
Vermont#85121 in 300
Minnesota#871091 in 355
New Mexico#87391 in 317
Wyoming#93101 in 290
North Dakota#97181 in 368
Wisconsin#981081 in 416
Maine#100261 in 382
Montana#100191 in 352
Iowa#107651 in 433
Nevada#11561 in 388
South Dakota#127141 in 505

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the girls born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Carolyn
Momentum · girls
Falling
  • 62 spots since 2024 (#1,160 → #1,222)
  • 275 spots since 2020 (#947 → #1,222)
  • 474 spots since 2015 (#748 → #1,222)
  • Biggest jump: 54 spots in 1908 (#254 → #200)
  • Biggest drop: 182 spots in 2021 (#947 → #1,129)
Rise & fade · girls
62 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1942 at #10 (19,978 births)
  • Births halved by 1959, 17 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 10 for 1 yr
  • Top 10: 1 yr · 1942
  • Top 100: 44 yrs · run 1927–1970
  • Top 1,000: 141 yrs · run 1880–2020
Share of babies · girls
1 in 68
  • Highest: 1 in 68 girls born in 1942 were named Carolyn (1.5%)
  • Latest: 1 in 8,688 girls born in 2025 (0.01%)
Era · girls
The 1940s
  • 32.7% of all girls named Carolyn (181,858) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s856#163 (1880)#207
1890s1,401#211 (1893)#225
1900s2,009#194 (1909)#226
1910s8,940#163 (1916)#174
1920s22,776#77 (1929)#121
1930s69,525#14 (1939)#35
1940s181,858#10 (1942)#13
1950s124,067#20 (1950)#29
1960s75,266#42 (1961)#55
1970s27,046#84 (1970)#118
1980s18,628#144 (1981)#152
1990s12,884#169 (1990)#236
2000s6,737#308 (2000)#484
2010s3,482#736 (2010)#796
2020s1,302#947 (2020)#1,130

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Carolyn in 1960

girls
#43
9,403 births · 1 in 215 girls
boys
#1,619
25 births · 1 in 85,293 boys

Top girls' names in 1960

  1. #1Mary51,472
  2. #2Susan39,208
  3. #3Linda37,316
  4. #4Karen36,378
  5. #5Donna34,138
  6. #6Lisa33,693
  7. #7Patricia32,113
  8. #8Debra26,732
  9. #9Cynthia26,706
  10. #10Deborah25,266
  11. #43Carolyn9,403

Top boys' names in 1960

  1. #1David85,929
  2. #2Michael84,153
  3. #3James76,815
  4. #4John76,096
  5. #5Robert72,357
  6. #6Mark58,727
  7. #7William49,361
  8. #8Richard43,553
  9. #9Thomas39,278
  10. #10Steven33,878
  11. #1,619Carolyn25
More about 1960

girls

2,021,941 girls got a published name in 1960; 1 in 215 of them was named Carolyn, which outranked 99.4% of the 7,332 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Carolyn
  1. #40Christine9,874
  2. #41Janice9,620
  3. #42Catherine9,536
  4. #43Carolyn9,403
  5. #44Rhonda9,255
  6. #45Tina9,133
  7. #46Cathy9,130
Biggest movers since 1959
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,798Lisha#2,395 → #597
  2. ↑ 1,223Elana#2,108 → #885
  3. ↑ 667Leisha#1,537 → #870
  4. ↑ 513Misty#1,214 → #701
  5. ↑ 462Loriann#1,396 → #934
Fallers
  1. ↓ 421Taryn#771 → #1,192
  2. ↓ 335Cheryll#993 → #1,328
  3. ↓ 305Marilynn#724 → #1,029
  4. ↓ 304Drema#997 → #1,301
  5. ↓ 258Merrie#978 → #1,236

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

2,132,320 boys got a published name in 1960; 1 in 85,293 of them was named Carolyn, which outranked 64.8% of the 4,598 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 29.1% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Carolyn
  1. #1,581Terryl26
  2. #1,581Torrence26
  3. #1,581Turner26
  4. #1,619Carolyn25
  5. #1,619Ali25
  6. #1,619Ann25
  7. #1,619Ariel25
  8. #1,658Barrie24
  9. #1,658Britton24
  10. #1,658Bubba24

Tied with 38 names at #1,619; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1959
Risers
  1. ↑ 3,061Stephon#3,988 → #927
  2. ↑ 1,039Kennedy#1,759 → #720
  3. ↑ 489Darryle#1,416 → #927
  4. ↑ 379Garret#1,360 → #981
  5. ↑ 373Darryll#1,324 → #951
Fallers
  1. ↓ 333Grayling#987 → #1,320
  2. ↓ 327Lucious#946 → #1,273
  3. ↓ 274Brion#919 → #1,193
  4. ↓ 261Gail#747 → #1,008
  5. ↓ 254Delton#939 → #1,193

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1960 →