Caroline is a feminine given name of Latin origin that means "strong" or "vigorous." It is derived from the male Latin name Carolus, which was popular among medieval European royalty and nobility due to its association with Charlemagne, the powerful king of the Franks who united much of Europe in the late 8th and early 9th centuries.
The name Caroline first appeared as a given name for females in France during the Middle Ages, likely as a diminutive form of Carolus. However, it did not become widely popular until the 17th century when it was adopted by several European royal families. The most notable example is perhaps Queen Caroline of Ansbach (1683-1737), who became the consort of King George II of Great Britain and Ireland.
In England, Caroline gained popularity during the Georgian era (1714-1830) due to its use among royalty and aristocracy. It continued to be a popular choice for girls throughout the 19th century and into the early 20th century. Today, Caroline remains a widely-used name in English-speaking countries and beyond.
Some famous individuals named Caroline include:
* Caroline of Brunswick (1751-1818), wife of King George IV of the United Kingdom
* Caroline O'Connor (born 1964), Australian stage actress
* Caroline Kennedy (born 1957), American lawyer, diplomat, and author; daughter of President John F. Kennedy
* Caroline Channing (born 1980), American television host and journalist
The given statistics show the annual number of births with the name Caroline in the United States from 1880 to 2023. Over this period, there have been significant fluctuations in the popularity of the name.
From 1880 to around 1960, the number of babies named Caroline remained relatively stable, ranging from a low of 306 births in 1880 to a high of 2,199 births in 1961. However, starting in the mid-1960s, there was a noticeable decrease in the popularity of the name, with fewer than 1,500 babies named Caroline each year between 1965 and 1978.
Starting in the late 1970s, the popularity of the name Caroline began to rise again. Between 1978 and 2000, there were consistently over 1,000 births per year with this name, peaking at 5,022 births in 2000. However, since then, the popularity of the name has decreased once more, with fewer than 4,000 babies named Caroline each year between 2001 and 2023.
Overall, while there have been periods of increased and decreased popularity for the name Caroline over the past century and a half, it remains a relatively common name in the United States. As of 2023, there have been a total of 244,999 babies named Caroline born in the U.S.