Charlean
A feminine name derived from Charles, meaning "free man".
Name Census estimates that about 634 living Americans carry the first name Charlean. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Charlean today is around 68 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Charlean births was 1952 (43 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Charlean. 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 Charlean is about 68 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Charleans were born before 1968.
People living today
634
~ 1 in 540,622 Americans
Peak year
1952
43 babies that year
Average age
68
years old
1990 SSA rank
#10,405
Tracked since 1912
Census
Charlean in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 620 people with the first name Charlean, which placed it at #17,656 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#17,656
National first-name rank
People counted
620
620 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
69.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Charlean
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Charlean is Black at 69.2%. The next largest groups are White (25.8%) and Hispanic (2.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Charlean described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Charlean at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American69.2% · 429
- White25.8% · 160
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 15
- Two or more races2.1% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 3
Popularity
Charlean: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Charlean from the 1910s through to the 1990s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 309 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Charlean 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 Charlean during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Charleans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Mississippi, Arkansas, Louisiana recorded the most babies named Charlean, while Alabama, Texas, Louisiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 70 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Charlean
The name Charlean has its origins in the French language, stemming from the Old French word "charlain," which was derived from the Late Latin "carolinus." This name is closely related to the more familiar name "Charles," which traces its roots back to the Germanic name "Karl," meaning "man" or "freeman."
In the Middle Ages, the name Charlean was widely used in various parts of Europe, particularly in France and the surrounding regions. Its popularity was likely influenced by the fame of Charlemagne, the King of the Franks and the first ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, who lived from 742 to 814 AD. The name Charlean was often used as a feminine variation of Charles, paying homage to the legendary ruler.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Charlean can be found in the historical records of the 12th century. During this period, a noble woman named Charlean de Châtillon was renowned for her philanthropic works and her support for religious institutions in France.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Charlean. In the 16th century, Charlean de Bourbon (1516-1590) was a prominent French noblewoman who played a significant role in the French Wars of Religion. Another noteworthy figure was Charlean de La Tour (1700-1770), a French writer and philosopher who made contributions to the Enlightenment movement.
In the 19th century, Charlean Mignault (1837-1914) was a renowned Canadian educator and advocate for women's rights. She founded several schools and played a pivotal role in promoting education for girls and women in Quebec.
Another prominent figure was Charlean Newbill (1901-1989), an American civil rights activist and labor organizer. She was a dedicated advocate for workers' rights and played a crucial role in the Memphis Sanitation Workers' Strike of 1968, which gained national attention and support from civil rights leaders like Martin Luther King Jr.
The name Charlean has a rich history and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including nobility, writers, educators, and activists. While its popularity may have waxed and waned over the centuries, the name remains a testament to its enduring legacy and cultural significance.
People
Charlean + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Charlean 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
Charlean: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Charlean?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 634 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Charlean 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 540,622 US residents.
Is Charlean a common name?
We classify Charlean as "Very Rare". It ranks above 86.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,289 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Charlean most popular?
The single biggest year for Charlean was 1952, when 43 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Charlean is about 68 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Charlean in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 620 people with the name Charlean, or 0.21 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #17,656 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Charlean in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Charlean?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Charlean appears almost entirely female. Of the 626 people counted with this name, 99.4% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Charlean?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Charlean is Black at 69.2%. The next largest groups are White (25.8%) and Hispanic (2.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Charlean most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Charlean in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.2% (429 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Charlean in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Charlean a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Charlean 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 Charlean still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Charlean 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 Charlean 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.
How many people have Charlean as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.