Karyle
A feminine name with Old French origins meaning "little beloved one".
Name Census estimates that about 19 living Americans carry the first name Karyle. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Karyle today is around 77 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Karyle births was 1945 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Karyle. 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 Karyle is about 77 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Karyles were born before 1959.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Karyle. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
19
~ 1 in 18,039,702 Americans
Peak year
1945
9 babies that year
Average age
77
years old
1961 SSA rank
#7,030
Tracked since 1942
Popularity
Karyle: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Karyle from the 1940s through to the 1960s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1940s, with 26 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
Karyle 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 Karyle 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 Karyle
The name Karyle has its origins in the ancient Germanic language, with roots dating back to the 5th century AD. It is believed to be derived from the Old High German word "kar," meaning "beloved," and the suffix "-yle," which is thought to have been used as a diminutive or endearing form.
In its earliest recorded use, the name appears in the Frankish chronicles, where it was written as "Karlilo." This spelling variation was likely influenced by the Frankish dialect of the time, as the name spread across Europe during the Carolingian Renaissance of the 8th and 9th centuries.
One of the earliest notable bearers of the name was Karyle the Wise, a Frankish scholar and advisor to Charlemagne, who lived from approximately 745 to 812 AD. His writings on theology and philosophy were highly regarded during his lifetime and contributed to the intellectual revival of the Carolingian era.
Another historically significant figure was Karyle of Reims, a French noblewoman and patron of the arts, who lived from 1102 to 1178. She was known for her patronage of the renowned stained glass artists of the Reims Cathedral and her support of the emerging Gothic architectural style.
In the 13th century, Karyle of Lincoln, an English mystic and alleged visionary, gained notoriety for her alleged visions and prophecies. She lived from around 1210 to 1285 and was a controversial figure in the religious circles of her time.
During the Renaissance period, Karyle Borgia, an Italian noble and patron of the arts, was a prominent figure in the cultural circles of 16th-century Rome. Born in 1475 and dying in 1555, she was known for her patronage of artists such as Raphael and Michelangelo.
In more recent history, Karyle Jenner, an American author and poet, lived from 1892 to 1965. She was known for her lyrical works that explored themes of nature, love, and the human experience, and her poetry was widely published during her lifetime.
People
Karyle + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Karyle 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
Karyle: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Karyle?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 19 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Karyle 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 18,039,702 US residents.
Is Karyle a common name?
We classify Karyle as "Very Rare". It ranks above 39.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 36 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Karyle most popular?
The single biggest year for Karyle was 1945, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Karyle is about 77 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 Karyle in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Karyle a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Karyle 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 Karyle still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Karyle 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 Karyle 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 called Karyle?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.