Carlei
A feminine variant of the English name Carl, of Germanic origin.
Name Census estimates that about 171 living Americans carry the first name Carlei. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Carlei today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Carlei births was 2017 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Carlei. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
171
~ 1 in 2,004,411 Americans
Peak year
2017
15 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,275
Tracked since 2000
Popularity
Carlei: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Carlei from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 96 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Carlei remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Carlei by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Carlei during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Carlei
The given name Carlei is believed to have originated from the Old English language, with its roots dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period in Britain. The name is thought to be a variation of the name "Carl," which was derived from the Germanic word "karl," meaning "free man" or "husband."
In the early medieval period, the name Carlei was primarily used in regions of England and parts of northern Europe that were influenced by Anglo-Saxon and Germanic cultures. It is possible that the name was initially a nickname or a diminutive form of the more common name "Carl."
There are no known historical references to the name Carlei in ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, some of the earliest recorded examples of the name can be found in medieval English records and documents from the 11th to 13th centuries.
One of the earliest known individuals with the name Carlei was a landowner and minor nobleman in Nottinghamshire, England, who lived in the late 12th century. Another notable figure was Carlei de Montfort, a knight who fought alongside Simon de Montfort during the Second Barons' War in England in the 13th century.
In the 14th century, a man named Carlei of Bury was a prominent merchant and member of the Guild of Corpus Christi in Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. Records also show a Carlei Langton who served as a royal clerk and administrator during the reign of King Edward III in the mid-14th century.
Fast-forwarding to the 16th century, Carlei Weston was an English composer and musician who lived during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. He is known for his contributions to the Reformation-era music tradition in England.
Over the centuries, the name Carlei has remained relatively uncommon, but it has been used sporadically throughout various parts of Europe, particularly in England, Scotland, and parts of Scandinavia. While it has never achieved widespread popularity, the name has been carried on by individuals from different walks of life, contributing to its rich and diverse history.
People
Carlei + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Carlei as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Carlei: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Carlei?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 171 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Carlei going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 2,004,411 US residents.
Is Carlei a common name?
We classify Carlei as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 172 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Carlei most popular?
The single biggest year for Carlei was 2017, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Carlei is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Carlei in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Carlei a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Carlei in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Carlei still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Carlei in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Carlei can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are named Carlei?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.