Caroline - Origin and Meaning of the name

[ 3 syll. ca-ro-li-ne, car-ol-ine ] The girl name Caroline is pronounced KEHRahLAYN ^KEY. Caroline's language of origin is Germanic. It is predominantly used in English and French. Derived from the word karl with the meaning 'man, free man'. Carolina was the oldest feminine form of Charles; it developed from the Latin Carolinus, itself an elaboration of Carolus. The popularity of the name in the USA reflects a growing trend in using place or state names as first names; North and South Carolina were themsleves named by King Charles II in honor of his father Charles I. The short form Carrie was promoted in the late 20th century by the Stephen King horror novel Carrie (1974), while the appearance of the fictional Carrie Bradshaw in the popular series Sex And the City (1998-2004) did not appear to increase its use among parents. Caroline is the feminine equivalent of the English and French Charles.

The name Caroline is widely used; it has 110 forms that are used in both English and foreign languages. English forms of the name include Carel, Carely, Cari (also used in Welsh), Cariel, Carileen, Carilena, Carilis, Carilynne, Carla (also used in German, Italian, Portuguese, and Scandinavian), Carlan, Carleen, Carlene, Carli, Carlie, Carlina (also used in Scandinavian), Carlinda, Carline, Carlita (also used in Scandinavian), Carllen, Carly, Carlyne, Carlynn, Carola (also used in Spanish and German), Carolann, Carole (also used in French), Carolee, Carolina (also used in German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish), Caroll, Carrol, Carroll, Cary, Caryle, Charla, Charleen, Charlena, Charlene (also used in French), Charline (also used in French), Charlotte (also used in French, German, Dutch, and Scandinavian), Ina (also used in Irish, Polish, Dutch, Japanese, German, and Scandinavian), Karaline, Karelyn, Kari (also used in Scandinavian), Karie, Karilyn, Karilynn, Karla (also used in German, Scandinavian, and Czech), Karleen, Karli, Karlie, Karlita (also used in Scandinavian), Karly, Karol, Karole, Karoline (also used in German and Scandinavian), Karyl, Line (also used in German), Lola (also used in Spanish, Hawaiian, and Italian), Lolita (also used in Spanish), Lotta (also used in Scandinavian), Sharleen, Sharlene, and Sharline. Other English forms include the short forms Caro, Carol, and Lina (also used in Finnish, German, and Hungarian), the pet forms Caddy, Callie, Carlyn, Carri, Carrie, Carry, Caryl, and Roline, and the spelling variants Caralin, Caraline, Caralyn, Carolyn (also used in German), Carolyne, Carolynn, Carolynne, Carrolyn, Karalyn, Karalynne, Karolyn, and Karolynn.

Forms of Caroline used in foreign languages include the Dutch Carlein, the Scandinavian Carlera, the Dutch Carlijn, the Portuguese and Spanish Carlota, the Italian Carlotta, the Dutch Carolien, the Scandinavian Carolinda, the Polish, Russian, and Frisian Inka, the Polish, German, and Scandinavian Kaja, the Scandinavian Karila, the Dutch Karlein, the Latvian Karlene, the Dutch Karlijn, the Czech Karlinka, the Czech, German, and Latinized Karola, the Finnish Karoliina, the German Karolin, the Czech, German, Hungarian, Polish, Scandinavian, and Slavic Karolina, the Polish Karolinka, the Czech Karolína, the German Linchen, the Hungarian Linka, the German Lotchen, and the Spanish Tota. The spelling variant Carolin (German) is another foreign form.

Caroline is a popular baby girl name. The name has been growing in popularity since the 1950s. Its usage peaked in 2000 with 0.252% of baby girls being named Caroline. It was #65 in rank then. In 2008, it ranked at #94 with a usage of 0.170%, and it was the 2nd most popular after the French, German, Dutch, English, and Scandinavian Charlotte, among all girl names in its family. It was 3.767% more widely used than Caroline in 2008.

Baby names that sound like Caroline include the English Caraline, the English Carolyne, the English Karalynne, the English, German, and Scandinavian Karoline, the English Caralin, the English Caralyn, the English Carileen, the English Carlana, the Dutch Carlijn, the English and Scandinavian Carlina, the English Carolann, the German Carolin, the English and German Carolyn, the English Carolynn, the English Carolynne, the English Carrolyn, the English and French Coraline, the English Karaline, the English Karalyn, and the English Karelyn.

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