2000
#6,887
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,498
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.67
Rare Last name
Carlile
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "fort by the pool" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,041 Americans carry the last name Carlile. That puts it at #7,306 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.47 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 67,993 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Carlile surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Carlile with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.0K
1 in 67,993
Census rank
#7,306
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,396 bearers of the surname Carlile in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.47 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7306th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Carlile, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Carlile
The surname Carlile is of English origin, deriving from the Old English words "cærr" and "hyll," which together mean "hill with a rock or quarry." This indicates that the name originated in areas where rocks or quarries were present on a hill.
The name is believed to have originated in the 11th century and is thought to have referred initially to people who lived near or worked in quarries on hills. The earliest recorded spelling of the name is found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Carlille."
In the 12th century, the name was recorded as "Carlil" in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166. The spelling "Carlile" became more common in the 13th century, as seen in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire in 1273.
The name was also associated with various place names, such as Carlisle in Cumbria, England, which was originally called "Caer Luel" by the Britons, meaning "fort of the rock or quarry." This suggests that the surname may have been derived from people who lived in or near the town of Carlisle.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Carlile was Sir John Carlile (c. 1270-1335), a Scottish knight and landowner. In the 16th century, Sir Hildebrand Carlile (c. 1540-1593) was a prominent English landowner and Member of Parliament.
In the 17th century, Christopher Carlile (1617-1693) was an English academic and clergyman who served as the Warden of Wadham College, Oxford. Thomas Carlile (1636-1693) was an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament.
In the 19th century, Richard Carlile (1790-1843) was a notable English radical and freethinker who campaigned for freedom of the press and the rights of free speech. He was imprisoned several times for publishing works that were considered blasphemous at the time.
Throughout history, the surname Carlile has been associated with various notable individuals, reflecting its long-standing presence in England and its connections to specific locations and occupations related to quarries and rock formations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Carlile
Among Census respondents with the surname Carlile, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Carlile bearers 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 surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Carlile surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.9% · 3,822
- Two or more races5.1% · 226
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 190
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 98
- Black or African American0.7% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 28
Timeline
Historical Census data for Carlile
Carlile appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#7,061
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,739
+241 bearers (+5.4%)
Per 100,000 1.61
Rank movement Down 174 places
2020
#7,306
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,396
-343 bearers (-7.2%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Down 245 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,887 | 4,498 | 1.67 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,061 | 4,739 | 1.61 | +241 bearers (+5.4%) | Down 174 places |
| 2020 | #7,306 | 4,396 | 1.47 | -343 bearers (-7.2%) | Down 245 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Carlile surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #7,061 | #7,306 | -3.5% |
| Count | 4,739 | 4,396 | -7.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.61 | 1.47 | -8.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Carlile bearers went from 4,739 to 4,396 (-7.2% change). The surname moved down 245 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,061 to #7,306.
FAQ
Carlile surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Carlile?
Name Census estimates that about 5,041 living Americans carry the surname Carlile. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 67,993 residents.
How common is Carlile?
Carlile ranks #7,306 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.47 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,396 people with the surname Carlile. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,041), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.47 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.47 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Carlile.
Has Carlile become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Carlile went from 4,739 recorded bearers to 4,396. That is a decrease of 343 (-7.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,061 to #7,306.
What does the Census say about the background of Carlile?
Among Census respondents with the surname Carlile, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.1%) and Hispanic (4.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Carlile in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.9% (3,822 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Carlile appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.9%), Two or More Races (5.1%), Hispanic (4.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Carlile (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Carlile mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name meaning "fort by the pool" in Old English. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Carlile (1.47 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many Americans have the surname Carlile?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.