Karlo
A masculine variant of the name Carl, of Germanic origin meaning "free man".
Name Census estimates that about 1,008 living Americans carry the first name Karlo. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Karlo today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Karlo births was 2010 (39 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Karlo. 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
1.0K
~ 1 in 340,034 Americans
Peak year
2010
39 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,415
Tracked since 1959
Popularity
Karlo: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Karlo from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 272 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Karlo remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Karlo 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 Karlo during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Karlos live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Karlo, while Florida, New York, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 97 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Karlo
The name Karlo is derived from the Germanic name Karl, which is a masculine given name that originated from the common Germanic word "karl", meaning "man" or "husband". This name has been in use since the Middle Ages and has its roots in various Germanic languages, including Old English, Old Norse, and Old High German.
The earliest recorded use of the name Karl can be traced back to the 8th century when it was borne by the Frankish ruler Charlemagne, also known as Charles the Great (742-814). Charlemagne was a powerful and influential figure who ruled much of Western Europe and played a significant role in the spread of Christianity and the preservation of classical literature.
Another notable historical figure with the name Karl was Karl Marx (1818-1883), the German philosopher, economist, and revolutionary socialist who developed the theory of Marxism, which became a major influence on modern political and economic thought.
In the realm of art and literature, the name Karlo was borne by the Italian writer and poet Carlo Goldoni (1707-1793), who was a prominent figure in the development of Italian comedy and is considered a pioneer of modern drama.
The name Karlo also has a connection to the world of music, with the famous German composer Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826) being a notable bearer of the name. He is renowned for his operas, including "Der Freischütz" and "Euryanthe", which were instrumental in the development of German Romantic opera.
Another notable figure with the name Karlo was the Austrian physicist and philosopher Carl Freiherr von Reichenbach (1788-1869), who made significant contributions to the fields of chemistry, magnetism, and optics, and is best known for his research on the phenomenon he called the "Odic force".
While the name Karlo is not as common as its original form Karl, it has been used throughout history in various cultures and languages, carrying with it a rich heritage and association with notable figures who have left their mark in various fields.
People
Karlo + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Karlo 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
Karlo: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Karlo?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,008 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Karlo 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 340,034 US residents.
Is Karlo a common name?
We classify Karlo as "Rare". It ranks above 90.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,031 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Karlo most popular?
The single biggest year for Karlo was 2010, when 39 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Karlo is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Karlo a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Karlo in the SSA data are male. 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.