Karl

Primarily a boy's name · 100% boys

Meaning

Karl is a Germanic male given name. It comes from Old High German, meaning 'man, husband, freeman' and was widely popularised in Central and Northern Europe by its status as a royal name, in particular through the Frankish Emperor Charlemagne.

From Wikipedia

Karl first appears in the data in 1974 and has been recorded in 8 different years as a boy's name. Its single biggest year was 1974 with 113 babies (rank #92 that year). It was not in the 2025 data. The name has been declining over the last five years.

Numerology of Karl

In Pythagorean numerology, every letter has a value from 1 to 9. Adding the letters of Karl yields these three numbers — a playful read on the name's character.

6Destiny numberThe carerNurturing, responsible, family at the centre.Sum of every letter. The overall character a name carries.
1Soul urgeThe leaderIndependent, pioneering, drawn to going first.Sum of the vowels — what's said to drive the heart.
5PersonalityThe free spiritCurious, restless, energised by change.Sum of the consonants — the outer impression.

293

Total babies (all years)

Years in the data

113

Peak in a single year

Popularity Over Time — Boys

Also a character in

In Succession: Karl Muller — Waystar CFO

Famous people named Karl

Karl Marxphilosopher · b. 1818
Karl Popperphilosopher of science · b. 1902
Karl Jaspersphysician · b. 1883
Karl Ferdinand Braununiversity teacher · b. 1850
Karl Adolph Gjellerupnovelist · b. 1857

Share your Karl story

Why did you choose this name — or what does it mean to you? Approved stories appear on this page.

More popular boys' names

Other boys' names starting with K

Year-by-Year Detail

Rank is among all boys' names registered that year.

Year	Babies	Rank
1974	113	#92
1981	42	#109
1986	47	#105
1988	45	#106
1989	40	#111
2015	1	#1,568
2016	2	#663
2017	3	#447