Carlyon
A masculine given name derived from the town of Charlton, England.
Name Census estimates that about 315 living Americans carry the first name Carlyon. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Carlyon today is around 71 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Carlyon births was 1946 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Carlyon. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Carlyon is about 71 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Carlyons were born before 1965.
People living today
315
~ 1 in 1,088,109 Americans
Peak year
1946
26 babies that year
Average age
71
years old
1973 SSA rank
#6,755
Tracked since 1930
Popularity
Carlyon: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Carlyon from the 1930s through to the 1970s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 196 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1940s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Carlyon 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 Carlyon during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Carlyons live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. Mississippi, Kentucky, Oklahoma recorded the most babies named Carlyon, while Oklahoma, Kentucky, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Carlyon
The name Carlyon is an English given name derived from the Old French name Carlun, which itself is a diminutive form of the Germanic name Charles or Carl. The name Charles comes from the Frankish language and is thought to be derived from the Germanic word "karl," meaning "man" or "freeman."
Carlyon was a relatively uncommon name in historical records, but it did have some notable bearers throughout history. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name comes from the 12th century, when Carlyon de Briouze was a Norman nobleman who lived in England. Another early bearer of the name was Sir Carlyon Legh, who was an English knight and landowner in the 15th century.
In the 16th century, there was a Carlyon Griffith, who was a Welsh poet and writer. He is best known for his works in the Welsh language, which helped to preserve and promote the use of the language during a time when it was under threat from English dominance.
Moving into the 17th century, Carlyon Whitelocke was an English lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Long Parliament during the English Civil War. He was a supporter of the Parliamentary cause and played a role in the negotiations with King Charles I.
Fast forward to the 19th century, and we find Carlyon Bellairs, who was an English novelist and travel writer. He was best known for his works of fiction, which often featured historical or adventure themes.
Throughout history, the name Carlyon has remained relatively rare, but it has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including noblemen, knights, writers, politicians, and lawyers. While not a particularly common name, it has managed to leave its mark on the historical record, reflecting the diverse backgrounds and accomplishments of those who have carried it.
People
Carlyon + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Carlyon 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
Carlyon: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Carlyon?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 315 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Carlyon 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 1,088,109 US residents.
Is Carlyon a common name?
We classify Carlyon as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 513 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Carlyon most popular?
The single biggest year for Carlyon was 1946, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Carlyon is about 71 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Carlyon a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Carlyon 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.
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.