Free man, in the documented Germanic root account.
The source traces French Charles through Latin Carolus and Germanic Karl to Proto-Germanic karilaz with this gloss. This is a historical root account, not a judgment about a bearer’s character.
Origin
French form with Germanic roots, transmitted through Latin.
The documented history connects French Charles, Latin Carolus, and Frankish/Old High German Karl. These language stages are retained rather than choosing one exclusive nationality.
English pronunciation
/t͡ʃɑɹlz/; /t͡ʃɑːlz/
Directly recorded English pronunciation of the exact given-name spelling. General American, then Received Pronunciation; the r differs by accent. The plain-text guide is approximate; a bearer’s preferred reading can differ. No audio reused.
Recorded English reading, as published. Accents and preferred pronunciations can differ.
Published name usage
Counts apply only to the exact spelling, place, year and recorded usage shown. Places are separate; these figures are never added into a worldwide total. Missing or suppressed records never mean zero.
Latest published record available for this spelling in each place and recorded usage
Place
Year
Recorded usage
Published births
Rank
Notes
Canada
2007
Girls
6
2763
2025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Canada
2025
Boys
672 · preliminary
27
2025 figures are preliminary. Quebec counts below five are randomly imputed by the publisher before national aggregation. Accents are removed in the source; this profile was matched only where the catalog spelling was unambiguous. Unpublished values are unknown, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
France
2002
Girls
5 (rounded to 5)
3384
Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
France
2025
Boys
1,040 (rounded to 5)
52
Counts are rounded to the nearest multiple of five. Ranks use unrounded publisher counts with randomly ordered ties; equally rounded counts can have different ranks. National coverage excludes Mayotte before 2012. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Automated direction labels are withheld for this rounded-count series. Rank basis: source published.
England & Wales
2025
Boys
437
119
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Northern Ireland
2025
Boys
16
143
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Scotland
2025
Boys
12
298
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: source published.
Ireland
2025
Boys
25
188
Names below three occurrences are unpublished. Accent recording changed in 2018; comparisons across that boundary may not describe the same spelling coverage. Counts refer to registrations in the year. Missing years are unavailable, not zero. Rank basis: source published.
United States
2025
Girls
10
9457
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
United States
2025
Boys
5,898
48
Source-reported counts; unpublished names are not zero. Rank basis: calculated from published counts.
Canada, Ireland and France coverage includes confidently matched existing profiles only; unmatched spellings are awaiting review. French counts are rounded to five.
Sources & notes
Open an entry for its source, credit, licence and full qualifications. Different name traditions remain separate.
Language of use: English
Checked against cited source
The exact English entry explicitly documents given-name use. This is separate from linguistic origin, nationality, ancestry and religious identity. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Meaning: Free man, in the documented Germanic root account.
Checked against cited source
The source traces French Charles through Latin Carolus and Germanic Karl to Proto-Germanic karilaz with this gloss. This is a historical root account, not a judgment about a bearer’s character. Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names; CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). No source audio reused.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Nickname: Charley
Checked against cited source
The entry separately documents Charles, Charlotte and Charlene short-form traditions; histories and statistical spellings remain distinct.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Nickname: Charlie
Checked against cited source
Nickname option: Charlie can be used for Charles. Explicit short-form relationship in the reviewed English name entry. Each name retains separate statistics and may have additional histories. Popularity counts remain separate. Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Source: https://en.wiktionary.org/w/index.php?title=Charlie&oldid=92704660. License: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Adaptation: Rare Baby Names presents a reviewed reverse link from the documented short-form entry, retaining language, rare-use and uncertainty qualifications. No source audio reused.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Origin: French form with Germanic roots, transmitted through Latin.
Checked against cited source
The documented history connects French Charles, Latin Carolus, and Frankish/Old High German Karl. These language stages are retained rather than choosing one exclusive nationality. Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names; CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). No source audio reused.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
English pronunciation: /t͡ʃɑɹlz/; /t͡ʃɑːlz/
Checked against cited source
Directly recorded English pronunciation of the exact given-name spelling. General American, then Received Pronunciation; the r differs by accent. The plain-text guide is approximate; a bearer’s preferred reading can differ. No audio reused. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Related name: Carl
Checked against cited source
Related English forms with a shared linguistic source; not interchangeable spellings or a nickname claim. Popularity counts remain separate.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
This adapted text is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
CC BY-SA 4.0
Syllables: 1 (these documented English readings)
Checked against cited source
Vowel-phoneme count for the cited reading(s) only; no universal count or source-language transfer asserted. Credit: Wiktionary contributors; adapted and condensed by Rare Baby Names.
Credit: Wiktionary contributors. Adapted by Rare Baby Names: wording shortened and name contexts separated. Recorded pronunciations are shown as published.
Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.
Credit: Statistics Canada, Table 17-10-0147-01, 1991–2025, released 23 September 2026.
License: Statistics Canada Open Licence
Adaptation: Adapted from Statistics Canada, First names at birth by sex at birth, selected indicators, Table 17-10-0147-01, reference years 1991–2025. This does not constitute an endorsement by Statistics Canada of this product.
Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.
Credit: Central Statistics Office, Ireland, VSA50 and VSA60, updated 27 February 2026.
License: CC BY 4.0
Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: joined the published count and rank indicators and matched unambiguous existing spellings. Source values retained.
Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.
Credit: Source : Insee, Fichier des prénoms, updated 16 July 2026.
License: Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab)
Adaptation: Adapted by Rare Baby Names: column names and sex codes mapped and unique case-only spellings matched to existing profiles. Published rounded counts and ranks retained.