Karlisha
A feminine name of unknown origin and meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 149 living Americans carry the first name Karlisha. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Karlisha today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Karlisha births was 1987 (13 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Karlisha. 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
149
~ 1 in 2,300,365 Americans
Peak year
1987
13 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2000 SSA rank
#16,247
Tracked since 1976
Census
Karlisha in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 159 people with the first name Karlisha, which placed it at #43,953 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
#43,953
National first-name rank
People counted
159
159 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
83.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Karlisha
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Karlisha is Black at 83.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.9%) and White (5.7%). 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 Karlisha 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 Karlisha at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American83.0% · 132
- Two or more races6.9% · 11
- White5.7% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Popularity
Karlisha: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Karlisha from the 1970s through to the 2000s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 68 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Karlisha 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 Karlisha 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 Karlisha
The name Karlisha is a relatively modern name with uncertain origins, likely emerging in the late 20th century as a blend of various cultural influences. While its precise etymology remains elusive, it appears to be a combination of elements from different names and languages.
One possible interpretation suggests that the first part, "Kar," may have roots in the Sanskrit word "kara," meaning "hand" or "ray," potentially indicating a connection to Hindu or Indian cultures. Alternatively, it could be derived from the Germanic root "karl," meaning "man" or "free man," which is also found in names like Charles and Carl.
The latter part, "lisha," may be influenced by the Hebrew name Elisha, meaning "God is salvation," or the Arabic name Alisha, meaning "alive" or "lively." However, it's worth noting that these potential origins are speculative, and the name Karlisha may have emerged more organically through cultural melding and creative naming practices.
Historically, there are no known recorded instances of the name Karlisha in ancient texts, religious scriptures, or significant historical records. This suggests that it is a relatively modern coinage, likely originating within the past few decades as a unique and multicultural name.
While the name Karlisha may not have a long historical lineage, a handful of notable individuals have borne this name in recent times. One such example is Karlisha Hurley, an American professional basketball player who played for the WNBA's Seattle Storm in the early 2000s.
Another prominent figure is Karlisha Caldwell, an American actress and model best known for her roles in television shows like "The Game" and "Greenleaf" in the late 2000s and 2010s.
Additionally, Karlisha Vaughn, an American author and motivational speaker, has gained recognition for her work inspiring and empowering women, particularly through her book "The Proverbs 31 Woman: Her Value Is Far Above Rubies" published in the early 2000s.
While the name Karlisha may be relatively new and its origins uncertain, it has already been embraced by individuals from diverse backgrounds, each adding their unique mark to the name's evolving legacy.
People
Karlisha + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Karlisha as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Karlisha: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Karlisha?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 149 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Karlisha 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 2,300,365 US residents.
Is Karlisha a common name?
We classify Karlisha as "Very Rare". It ranks above 70.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 156 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Karlisha most popular?
The single biggest year for Karlisha was 1987, when 13 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Karlisha is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Karlisha in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 159 people with the name Karlisha, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #43,953 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 Karlisha 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 Karlisha?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Karlisha appears almost entirely female. Of the 149 people counted with this name, 100.0% 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 Karlisha?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Karlisha is Black at 83.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.9%) and White (5.7%). 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 Karlisha most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Karlisha in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.0% (132 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 Karlisha in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Karlisha a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Karlisha 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 Karlisha still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Karlisha 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 Karlisha 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 are called Karlisha?
If you just want to know how many people have the name Karlisha, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.