UK boy's name
Carlisle
A masculine given name of uncertain origin, possibly meaning "winding landscape".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2021. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Carlisle is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Carlisle popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2021 in this profile. In that release it ranked #3017, with 6 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2010, with 6 births.
This profile covers 39 England and Wales registrations across 8 recorded years from 2010 to 2021. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 100% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 39 living people in the UK are called Carlisle. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2022 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Carlisle ranked #3017 for boys in England and Wales in 2021, with 6 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2010, when 6 boys were registered as Carlisle.
- • About 39 living people in the UK are estimated to have Carlisle as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#3017
2021
Births in 2021
6
Latest year
Peak year
2010
6 births
Estimated living
39
2026
Meaning
What does Carlisle mean?
The name Carlisle originated in the medieval English town of the same name, located in the county of Cumbria in the northwest of England. The name is derived from the Old English words "cær" meaning "fort" and "lēah" meaning "clearing" or "meadow", referring to the strategic location of the town as a walled settlement in a clearing.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Carlisle comes from the Venerable Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People, written in the 8th century AD. Bede mentions the town of Carlisle (referred to as Caer Luel) as the site of an important battle between the Britons and the Angles in the 7th century.
In the Middle Ages, the name Carlisle became associated with the powerful bishopric and cathedral city of the same name. The Bishop of Carlisle was an influential figure in the region, and the name may have been adopted as a given name by those with connections to the city or the bishopric.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Carlisle was Carlisle of Bury St Edmunds, a 12th-century monk and hagiographer who wrote a life of St Edmund, the patron saint of the town of Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, England.
Another notable bearer of the name was Carlisle Floyd (1926-2021), an American opera composer and librettist best known for his operas Susannah and Of Mice and Men. His works are celebrated for their incorporation of American themes and settings.
In the realm of literature, Carlisle Cullen is a character in the popular Twilight series of novels by Stephenie Meyer. He is a member of the Cullen family of vampires and is portrayed as a compassionate and highly skilled doctor.
Sir Carlisle Spedding (1888-1936) was a British soldier and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Fiji from 1933 to 1936. He played a key role in the development of the island nation during his tenure.
One of the earliest recorded female bearers of the name was Carlisle Pollock Floyd (1915-1982), an American painter and artist known for her abstract expressionist works. She was part of the influential New York School of artists in the mid-20th century.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Carlisle over time
The chart below shows babies named Carlisle registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 2010 to 2021. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Carlisle, the clearest high point is 2010. The latest England and Wales figure is 6 births in 2021, compared with 6 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Carlisle by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Carlisle was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #3176 | 11 | 2 |
| 2010s | #3661 | 28 | 6 |
Related
Names similar to Carlisle
- Charlie 104,761
- Callum 65,796
- Connor 53,072
- Cameron 40,394
- Charles 33,091
- Christopher 26,849
- Caleb 15,553
- Corey 12,622
- Carter 11,505
- Cody 11,075
- Conor 10,298
- Christian 9,695
FAQ
Carlisle: questions and answers
How popular is the name Carlisle in the UK right now?
In 2021, Carlisle was ranked #3017 for boys in England and Wales, with 6 births registered.
When was Carlisle most popular?
The peak year on record was 2010, with 6 babies registered as Carlisle in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Carlisle?
A masculine given name of uncertain origin, possibly meaning "winding landscape".
How many people are called Carlisle in the UK?
A total of 39 babies have been registered as Carlisle across the 8 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.