Male name
Charles
33,528 births (England and Wales, 1996–2025), peaking in 1998.
Origin
From French Charles, from Old French Charles, Carles, from Latin Carolus, from and also reinfluenced by Frankish and Old High German Karl, from Proto-Germanic *karilaz (“free man”); compare the English word churl and the German Kerl. In reference to the Ecuadorian island, a clipping of the original name King Charles's Island, granted in honor of Charles II of England.From Wiktionary, entry “Charles”, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.
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How many babies received it
From the official birth registers.
In England and Wales
Peak in 1998: 1,868 births. 33,528 births from 1996 to 2025. A name given mostly in the 1990s, 2000s and 2010s. At its peak, it ranked 41st among boys' names in 1998. It is still given: 2,503 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, Open Government Licence v3.0.
In the United States
Peak in 1947: 40,919 births. 2,447,135 births from 1880 to 2025. A name given steadily, decade after decade, from the 1910s to the 1970s. At its peak, it ranked 4th among boys' names in 1880. It is still given: 28,917 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Social Security Administration, Popular Baby Names, public domain.
In Ireland
Peak in 1964: 145 births. 3,682 births from 1964 to 2025. A name given steadily, decade after decade, from the 1960s to the 2010s. At its peak, it ranked 44th among boys' names in 1964. It is still given: 124 births from 2021 to 2025.
Source: Central Statistics Office, Irish Babies' Names, CC BY 4.0.
Elsewhere in the world
The name in the birth records of the 10 countries we track. The period covered varies from country to country.
| Country | Births | Period | Best rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 245,770 | 1900–2025 | 11th in 1900 |
| Quebec | 16,490 | 1980–2025 | 12th in 2022 |
| Switzerland | 4,774* | 1915–2025 | — |
| Belgium | 606 | 2014–2023 | — |
| Berlin | 151 | 2012–2023 | — |
* These are the people living in the country, counted by year of birth, not the number of births.
Source: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms, Etalab Open Licence 2.0; Retraite Québec, Banque de prénoms, CC BY 4.0; Federal Statistical Office, First names of the population by year of birth, free use with attribution; Statbel, first names of newborns, CC BY 4.0 (one total for the whole period, no yearly breakdown); Open Data Berlin, Häufige Vornamen, CC BY 3.0 DE (every name a child carries, not only the first).
The numbers of the name
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Your name and theirs
The number of each name, and the number of the bond, which comes from adding them together. A symbolic game: what your two names say together, to be read as a metaphor, not as a verdict on your relationship.