Charles

#9,457 for girls in 2025, 10 births · #48 for boys in 2025, 5,898 births
Given to boys 99.5% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1880 · 5,348 births
Debut · boys
5,348 births
In top 100 · boys
146 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
2,434,659
since 1880

Charles over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201934peak #4, 1880boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#9,45710#485,898
2024#11,1228#515,613
2023#10,3129#545,421
2022#10,3839#505,934
2021#15,2515#506,010
2020#7,96913#466,249
2019#10,4739#526,406
2018#8,14613#536,667
2017#8,77612#487,193
2016#6,90117#527,127
2015#10,8669#507,204
2014#7,63615#517,362
2013#7,74815#577,025
2012#7,80415#626,947
2011#11,1819#616,987
2010#12,2768#637,106
2009—#647,284
2008#6,79919#637,288
2007#9,53912#627,452
2006#8,23714#608,013
2005#7,13816#567,933
2004#2,92754#567,652
2003#11,3258#577,696
2002#12,1877#587,208
2001#6,32217#557,283
2000#7,15814#517,525
1999#8,22311#507,525
1998#8,01611#487,849
1997#6,16315#497,656
1996#5,06519#438,248
1995#4,51822#448,478
1994#5,01619#439,018
1993#3,77628#449,855
1992#3,41932#4310,469
1991#3,20734#3811,336
1990#2,73742#3812,000
1989#2,07260#3612,245
1988#1,49191#3712,109
1987#1,54582#3512,173
1986#1,47285#3412,625
1985#1,269106#3412,900
1984#1,179112#3312,942
1983#1,114121#3313,212
1982#1,131124#3114,310
1981#1,261102#3114,427
1980#1,161116#2914,959
1979#1,061130#2814,806
1978#1,104118#2714,844
1977#1,31588#2614,743
1976#1,122106#2613,921
1975#963129#2514,574
1974#1,133102#2315,151
1973#1,009117#2315,752
1972#982122#2316,968
1971#903146#2219,851
1970#891148#2122,411
1969#912135#1921,658
1968#906130#2021,575
1967#926122#2021,288
1966#874131#2022,252
1965#870132#2023,494
1964#920129#1725,908
1963#898136#1626,762
1962#960122#1527,590
1961#987120#1329,194
1960#926132#1329,677
1959#837150#1130,797
1958#900129#1132,242
1957#821152#1134,283
1956#792156#1135,239
1955#788148#1135,365
1954#838126#1037,463
1953#779138#938,421
1952#831121#938,866
1951#710151#939,406
1950#693154#939,095
1949#708143#940,052
1948#679150#938,676
1947#725138#940,781
1946#695134#938,215
1945#658125#732,469
1944#615142#734,662
1943#571176#736,632
1942#579163#735,854
1941#563155#632,742
1940#588140#631,689
1939#548149#630,789
1938#570144#631,151
1937#496176#630,520
1936#567133#629,101
1935#528149#629,983
1934#496168#729,790
1933#446209#628,991
1932#468197#631,092
1931#443212#629,934
1930#436237#631,867
1929#408262#529,930
1928#412271#531,243
1927#395303#531,941
1926#451225#529,521
1925#470216#529,580
1924#526186#530,460
1923#570159#528,966
1922#488199#528,839
1921#539176#529,242
1920#564163#528,309
1919#616129#525,192
1918#592144#526,921
1917#612124#724,143
1916#606123#623,612
1915#658101#721,960
1914#67175#716,937
1913#74849#713,191
1912#59667#711,070
1911#68640#75,725
1910#75332#74,784
1909#74729#74,029
1908#70930#73,929
1907#84020#63,884
1906#74224#63,607
1905#77722#53,608
1904#71024#63,406
1903#78919#53,213
1902#66725#53,361
1901#65923#53,049
1900#67628#54,098
1899#64423#53,147
1898#76819#53,557
1897#69920#53,341
1896#1,04710#53,639
1895#57827#53,633
1894#56826#53,788
1893#59423#53,723
1892#50329#54,319
1891#47529#53,640
1890#47530#54,061
1889#46828#54,199
1888#47028#54,591
1887#37233#54,031
1886#45922#54,533
1885#42824#54,599
1884#46319#54,802
1883#45118#44,826
1882#37223#55,091
1881#40517#54,636
1880#51811#45,348
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Charles was already there! It came in at #4, and was given to 5,348 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1889–1909, when fewer than 4,400 boys a year got the name.

Where Charles is popular in 1934

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #19 for boys · 7 births · 1 in 42 boysAKMaine: #8 for boys · 146 births · 1 in 43 boysMEVermont: #10 for boys · 52 births · 1 in 45 boysVTNew Hampshire: #9 for boys · 75 births · 1 in 41 boysNHWashington: #10 for boys · 192 births · 1 in 50 boysWAIdaho: #7 for boys · 86 births · 1 in 43 boysIDMontana: #7 for boys · 112 births · 1 in 35 boysMTNorth Dakota: #10 for boys · 97 births · 1 in 61 boysNDMinnesota: #10 for boys · 390 births · 1 in 51 boysMNIllinois: #7 for boys · 1,511 births · 1 in 34 boysILWisconsin: #12 for boys · 415 births · 1 in 56 boysWIMichigan: #8 for boys · 932 births · 1 in 40 boysMINew York: #9 for boys · 1,996 births · 1 in 42 boysNYMassachusetts: #11 for boys · 706 births · 1 in 40 boysMARhode Island: #11 for boys · 102 births · 1 in 42 boysRIOregon: #8 for boys · 128 births · 1 in 42 boysORNevada: #20 for boys · 7 births · 1 in 60 boysNVWyoming: #7 for boys · 53 births · 1 in 29 boysWYSouth Dakota: #8 for boys · 107 births · 1 in 50 boysSDIowa: #7 for boys · 427 births · 1 in 44 boysIAIndiana: #7 for boys · 814 births · 1 in 28 boysINOhio: #7 for boys · 1,604 births · 1 in 29 boysOHPennsylvania: #8 for boys · 2,308 births · 1 in 31 boysPANew Jersey: #7 for boys · 740 births · 1 in 32 boysNJConnecticut: #11 for boys · 206 births · 1 in 47 boysCTCalifornia: #7 for boys · 748 births · 1 in 48 boysCAUtah: #14 for boys · 66 births · 1 in 72 boysUTColorado: #7 for boys · 196 births · 1 in 41 boysCONebraska: #8 for boys · 227 births · 1 in 47 boysNEMissouri: #6 for boys · 1,042 births · 1 in 26 boysMOKentucky: #3 for boys · 1,164 births · 1 in 23 boysKYWest Virginia: #4 for boys · 831 births · 1 in 21 boysWVVirginia: #5 for boys · 865 births · 1 in 25 boysVAMaryland: #5 for boys · 618 births · 1 in 18 boysMDDelaware: #6 for boys · 68 births · 1 in 21 boysDEArizona: #9 for boys · 78 births · 1 in 49 boysAZNew Mexico: #8 for boys · 88 births · 1 in 54 boysNMKansas: #6 for boys · 405 births · 1 in 34 boysKSArkansas: #2 for boys · 751 births · 1 in 24 boysARTennessee: #4 for boys · 1,141 births · 1 in 22 boysTNNorth Carolina: #5 for boys · 1,150 births · 1 in 30 boysNCSouth Carolina: #6 for boys · 604 births · 1 in 32 boysSCDistrict of Columbia: #5 for boys · 187 births · 1 in 20 boysDCOklahoma: #2 for boys · 882 births · 1 in 26 boysOKLouisiana: #4 for boys · 611 births · 1 in 31 boysLAMississippi: #6 for boys · 715 births · 1 in 27 boysMSAlabama: #5 for boys · 1,001 births · 1 in 28 boysALGeorgia: #6 for boys · 947 births · 1 in 30 boysGAHawaii: #9 for boys · 72 births · 1 in 43 boysHITexas: #3 for boys · 1,703 births · 1 in 34 boysTXFlorida: #5 for boys · 417 births · 1 in 28 boysFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · boys
  1. Arkansas#2 · 1 in 24
  2. Oklahoma#2 · 1 in 26
  3. Kentucky#3 · 1 in 23
  4. Texas#3 · 1 in 34
  5. West Virginia#4 · 1 in 21

Best ever in a state: #2 in Vermont, 1910.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
Arkansas#27511 in 24
Oklahoma#28821 in 26
Kentucky#31,1641 in 23
Texas#31,7031 in 34
Louisiana#46111 in 31
Tennessee#41,1411 in 22
West Virginia#48311 in 21
Alabama#51,0011 in 28
District of Columbia#51871 in 20
Florida#54171 in 28
Maryland#56181 in 18
North Carolina#51,1501 in 30
Virginia#58651 in 25
Delaware#6681 in 21
Georgia#69471 in 30
Kansas#64051 in 34
Mississippi#67151 in 27
Missouri#61,0421 in 26
South Carolina#66041 in 32
California#77481 in 48
Colorado#71961 in 41
Idaho#7861 in 43
Illinois#71,5111 in 34
Indiana#78141 in 28
Iowa#74271 in 44
Montana#71121 in 35
New Jersey#77401 in 32
Ohio#71,6041 in 29
Wyoming#7531 in 29
Maine#81461 in 43
Michigan#89321 in 40
Nebraska#82271 in 47
New Mexico#8881 in 54
Oregon#81281 in 42
Pennsylvania#82,3081 in 31
South Dakota#81071 in 50
Arizona#9781 in 49
Hawaii#9721 in 43
New Hampshire#9751 in 41
New York#91,9961 in 42
Minnesota#103901 in 51
North Dakota#10971 in 61
Vermont#10521 in 45
Washington#101921 in 50
Connecticut#112061 in 47
Massachusetts#117061 in 40
Rhode Island#111021 in 42
Wisconsin#124151 in 56
Utah#14661 in 72
Alaska#1971 in 42
Nevada#2071 in 60

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Charles
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 3 spots since 2024 (#51 → #48)
  • 2 spots since 2020 (#46 → #48)
  • 2 spots since 2015 (#50 → #48)
  • Biggest jump: 6 spots in 2014 (#57 → #51)
  • Biggest drop: 6 spots in 1997 (#43 → #49)
Rise & fade · boys
Peaked on debut
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1880 at #4 (5,348 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 10 for 75 yrs
  • Top 10: 75 yrs · run 1880–1954
  • Top 100: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 21
  • Highest: 1 in 21 boys born in 1880 were named Charles (4.8%)
  • Latest: 1 in 290 boys born in 2025 (0.35%)
Era · boys
The 1940s
  • 14.9% of all boys named Charles (361,772) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s46,656#4 (1880)#5
1890s36,848#5 (1892)#5
1900s36,184#5 (1900)#6
1910s173,535#5 (1918)#7
1920s298,031#5 (1927)#5
1930s303,218#6 (1930)#6
1940s361,772#6 (1941)#8
1950s361,177#9 (1951)#10
1960s249,398#13 (1960)#17
1970s163,021#21 (1970)#24
1980s131,902#29 (1980)#33
1990s92,434#38 (1990)#44
2000s75,334#51 (2000)#58
2010s70,024#48 (2017)#55
2020s35,125#46 (2020)#50

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Charles in 1934

girls
#496
168 births · 1 in 6,216 girls
boys
#7
29,790 births · 1 in 35 boys

Top girls' names in 1934

  1. #1Mary56,929
  2. #2Betty31,089
  3. #3Barbara29,239
  4. #4Shirley22,841
  5. #5Dorothy21,281
  6. #6Patricia20,844
  7. #7Joan19,465
  8. #8Margaret15,144
  9. #9Helen14,100
  10. #10Nancy13,520
  11. #496Charles168

Top boys' names in 1934

  1. #1Robert55,843
  2. #2James54,270
  3. #3John46,743
  4. #4William40,175
  5. #5Richard33,167
  6. #6Donald30,408
  7. #7Charles29,790
  8. #8George18,500
  9. #9Thomas17,373
  10. #10Joseph17,111
More about 1934

girls

1,044,225 girls got a published name in 1934; 1 in 6,216 of them was named Charles, which outranked 90.0% of the 4,973 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.4% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Charles
  1. #491Vernell170
  2. #494Francine169
  3. #494Leta169
  4. #496Charles168
  5. #496Claudine168
  6. #496Mercedes168
  7. #496Rowena168
  8. #500Katharine167
  9. #501Althea165
  10. #502Camille164

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1933
Risers
  1. ↑ 571Luann#1,442 → #871
  2. ↑ 469Alison#1,442 → #973
  3. ↑ 439Golda#1,364 → #925
  4. ↑ 350Ronald#1,244 → #894
  5. ↑ 346Gale#1,102 → #756
Fallers
  1. ↓ 685Nira#463 → #1,148
  2. ↓ 342Vina#782 → #1,124
  3. ↓ 316Zita#947 → #1,263
  4. ↓ 299Myrtie#834 → #1,133
  5. ↓ 278Theola#985 → #1,263

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,032,596 boys got a published name in 1934; 1 in 35 of them was named Charles, which outranked 99.8% of the 4,205 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 33.3% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Charles
  1. #4William40,175
  2. #5Richard33,167
  3. #6Donald30,408
  4. #7Charles29,790
  5. #8George18,500
  6. #9Thomas17,373
  7. #10Joseph17,111
Biggest movers since 1933
Risers
  1. ↑ 746Lanny#1,361 → #615
  2. ↑ 630Kerry#1,586 → #956
  3. ↑ 620Marland#1,456 → #836
  4. ↑ 404Kirk#1,202 → #798
  5. ↑ 350Valentin#1,281 → #931
Fallers
  1. ↓ 730Neville#995 → #1,725
  2. ↓ 616Garner#770 → #1,386
  3. ↓ 520Vivian#905 → #1,425
  4. ↓ 488Finis#869 → #1,357
  5. ↓ 464Malcom#961 → #1,425

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1934 →