UK girl's name
Carolyne
A feminine name derived from the Germanic masculine name Karl, meaning "free man".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2011. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Carolyne is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Carolyne popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2011 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5785, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2011, with 3 births.
This profile covers 3 England and Wales registrations across 1 recorded years from 2011 to 2011. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NRS Scotland, 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.
Carolyne is at its recorded peak in the England and Wales series.
We estimate that about 33 living people in the UK are called Carolyne. 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 2012 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Carolyne ranked #5785 for girls in England and Wales in 2011, with 3 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2011, when 3 girls were registered as Carolyne.
- • Carolyne ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #582 in 1987.
- • About 33 living people in the UK are estimated to have Carolyne as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#5785
2011
Births in 2011
3
Latest year
Peak year
2011
3 births
Estimated living
33
2026
Meaning
What does Carolyne mean?
The name Carolyne is derived from the Late Latin name Carolus, which is the masculine form of the feminine name Carola. Carolus is derived from the Germanic name Karl, which comes from the Old Frankish word "karl", meaning "man" or "warrior".
The name Carolyne is believed to have originated in the 8th century AD, during the reign of the Frankish king Charlemagne, also known as Charles the Great. Charlemagne was a dominant figure in the history of Western Europe and was the first ruler to unite most of Western and Central Europe.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Carolyne appears in the 11th century, in the form of Carolingia, which was the name of a noble family from the Duchy of Lorraine. The family claimed descent from Charlemagne, and the name Carolingia was derived from the Latin name Carolus.
Throughout history, there have been several notable women named Carolyne. One of the most famous was Carolyne Leckampion (1598-1677), a French Catholic nun and mystic who founded the Congregation of Our Lady of Calvary in Paris.
Another notable Carolyne was Carolyne Beatrix Gilman (1749-1793), an American writer and poet who is considered one of the first female writers in America to have her work published. Her collection of poems, "Memoirs of a New England Village" was published in 1792.
In the 19th century, Carolyne Elizabeth Sarah Norton (1808-1877) was a prominent English society beauty, writer, and social reformer. She is remembered for her campaign to improve the rights of married women in England, and for her scandalous relationship with the Prime Minister, Lord Melbourne.
In the early 20th century, Carolyne Caroline Burke (1897-1964) was an American journalist and author who wrote extensively about the Harlem Renaissance and the civil rights movement. Her best-known work is the book "The New Negro: An Interpretation", published in 1925.
Another notable Carolyne from the 20th century was Carolyne Lenora Snowden (1919-1996), an American civil rights activist and educator who played a key role in the desegregation of schools in Little Rock, Arkansas, in 1957.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Decades
Carolyne by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Carolyne 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | #5785 | 3 | 1 |
Geography
Where Carolyne is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Carolyne. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Carolyne ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #582 in 1987.
Across the UK
Carolyne in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#582 in 1987
7 years of NRS records, 31 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Carolyne
-
Carolyne Underwood
reality television participant
Reality show contestant
1982-
-
Carolyne Culver
politician
British politician
1973-
-
Carolyne Larrington
university teacher; medievalist; man of letters; literary scholar
British medieval scholar
1959-
-
Carolyne Christie
aristocrat
British aristocrat
1946-
Related
Names similar to Carolyne
- Chloe 111,265
- Charlotte 88,733
- Caitlin 28,931
- Courtney 23,162
- Chelsea 13,049
- Clara 9,435
- Connie 8,402
- Catherine 8,376
- Charlie 7,964
- Cerys 7,506
- Casey 7,018
- Cara 6,375
FAQ
Carolyne: questions and answers
How popular is the name Carolyne in the UK right now?
In 2011, Carolyne was ranked #5785 for girls in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.
When was Carolyne most popular?
The peak year on record was 2011, with 3 babies registered as Carolyne in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Carolyne?
A feminine name derived from the Germanic masculine name Karl, meaning "free man".
How many people are called Carolyne in the UK?
A total of 3 babies have been registered as Carolyne across the 1 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 31 more in Scotland.
Where is Carolyne most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Carolyne ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #582 in 1987. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
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.