Charlie Name Meaning, Origin, Popularity, Boy Names Like Charlie

Charlie Name Origin: English
Pronunciation: char-lee
See what 23 people think about Charlie

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Charlie Name Meaning

The name Charlie is derived from the name Charalampos, which means “shining light”. This is fitting, as Charlie is often seen as a bright, cheerful, and energetic name. It is also seen as a symbol of hope and optimism, and is thus often used as a name for a new baby boy.

Origins of the Name Charlie

The name Charlie has its roots in ancient Greece, where it was used as a nickname for the name Charalampos. This was sometimes shortened to “Lampos” and then further shortened to “Lamp”, which eventually became “Charlie”. This name was popular in the 18th century, when it was used in England, Scotland, and Ireland. In the 19th century, the name became popular in the United States, where it has been used ever since.

Popularity of the Name Charlie

Charlie has been a popular name in the United States for decades. In fact, it has been in the top 100 boys’ names since the Social Security Administration started keeping records in 1880. It has been in the top 10 since the early 2000s, and has been in the top 5 since 2016. It is currently the fourth most popular boys’ name in the United States.

Final Thoughts on the Name Charlie

Charlie is a beloved name with a long history. It has its roots in ancient Greece and has been popular in the United States for centuries. With its cheerful and optimistic connotations, it’s no wonder why it is so beloved. It is currently the fourth most popular boys’ name in the United States, and is sure to remain a favorite for years to come.

Charlie Name Popularity

How popular is the name Charlie? Here’s everything we know.

Year	Rank	# Births	% Births
1910	33	1,073	0.3048%
1911	45	943	0.2532%
1912	60	1,413	0.2802%
1913	63	1,566	0.2762%
1914	65	1,867	0.2679%
1915	76	2,143	0.2359%
1916	70	2,386	0.247%
1917	67	2,500	0.2499%
1918	72	2,701	0.2517%
1919	67	2,856	0.2727%
1920	70	2,747	0.2471%
1921	76	2,553	0.223%
1922	72	2,616	0.2348%
1923	81	2,439	0.2178%
1924	80	2,461	0.2119%
1925	81	2,544	0.2251%
1926	82	2,413	0.2194%
1927	82	2,475	0.2236%
1928	81	2,418	0.226%
1929	87	2,152	0.2078%
1930	91	2,080	0.1991%
1931	94	1,937	0.1963%
1932	92	2,081	0.2106%
1933	95	1,938	0.208%
1934	100	1,856	0.192%
1935	101	1,898	0.1953%
1936	103	1,809	0.1878%
1937	110	1,717	0.1742%
1938	112	1,762	0.1721%
1939	112	1,708	0.1679%
1940	111	1,742	0.1639%
1941	116	1,708	0.1518%
1942	118	1,827	0.1447%
1943	122	1,803	0.1381%
1944	120	1,850	0.1493%
1945	128	1,685	0.1382%
1946	136	1,748	0.1185%
1947	145	1,879	0.1126%
1948	144	1,861	0.1166%
1949	145	1,799	0.1118%
1950	151	1,650	0.1025%
1951	154	1,650	0.0973%
1952	161	1,634	0.0936%
1953	175	1,507	0.0851%
1954	182	1,422	0.0778%
1955	184	1,409	0.0766%
1956	185	1,497	0.0793%
1957	193	1,418	0.0737%
1958	196	1,403	0.0742%
1959	204	1,388	0.0731%
1960	224	1,210	0.0639%
1961	224	1,199	0.0635%
1962	220	1,193	0.065%
1963	221	1,138	0.0634%
1964	229	1,038	0.059%
1965	235	940	0.0575%
1966	247	808	0.0518%
1967	253	760	0.0501%
1968	269	706	0.047%
1969	267	745	0.0484%
1970	276	736	0.0462%
1971	292	655	0.0436%
1972	288	602	0.0442%
1973	296	577	0.0445%
1974	323	510	0.0392%
1975	323	520	0.0405%
1976	310	534	0.0414%
1977	310	570	0.0423%
1978	290	629	0.0468%
1979	293	662	0.0469%
1980	321	562	0.0384%
1981	309	579	0.0394%
1982	358	462	0.0309%
1983	336	508	0.0344%
1984	346	498	0.0335%
1985	343	508	0.0335%
1986	361	482	0.0319%
1987	374	476	0.0312%
1988	399	457	0.0293%
1989	399	496	0.0307%
1990	426	478	0.0288%
1991	442	460	0.0282%
1992	452	445	0.0279%
1993	491	383	0.0246%
1994	480	408	0.0266%
1995	454	459	0.0305%
1996	488	398	0.0266%
1997	465	431	0.0291%
1998	469	430	0.0287%
1999	426	509	0.034%
2000	455	487	0.0319%
2001	442	512	0.034%
2002	419	553	0.0369%
2003	369	674	0.0443%
2004	347	783	0.0514%
2005	329	904	0.0591%
2006	336	908	0.058%
2007	335	929	0.0589%
2008	307	1,060	0.0686%
2009	272	1,236	0.0827%
2010	246	1,412	0.098%
2011	234	1,500	0.1053%
2012	231	1,515	0.1063%
2013	230	1,541	0.1082%
2014	222	1,674	0.1149%
2015	227	1,652	0.1135%
2016	226	1,688	0.1171%
2017	212	1,764	0.1264%
2018	215	1,707	0.1242%
2019	209	1,806	0.1334%
2020	208	1,771	0.1391%
2021	188	1,983	0.1622%
2022	184	2,012	0.1525%

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Data via SSA.gov.

Names Like Charlie

If you like Charlie, you’ll love these other names like Charlie.

What names are variants of Charlie?

Mix it up with these names that are a variation of the name Charlie.

Name	Meaning	Origin	Popularity	Other Gender
Charly	Free man	German

What names sound like Charlie?

If you like how Charlie sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Charlie.

Name	Meaning	Origin
Charley	Free man	German
Sherill		English
Sherrill		English

Lists With Charlie

Find inspiration in these baby boy name lists featuring the name Charlie.

Siblings of Charlie

Mamas with kids named Charlie also have kids with these names.

Name	Meaning	Origin
Noah	To rest	Hebrew
Aliya	Rising, ascending	Hebrew
Kylie	Boomerang	Aboriginal
Ryann	King	Irish
Ezra	Help	Hebrew
Isabella	Devoted to God	Italian
Brielle	God is my strength	French
Hallie	A variant spelling of Hally.	Scandinavian
Josef	Jehovah increases	Hebrew
Taylor	Tailor; to cut	French

Reece	Enthusiasm	Welsh
Grace	Gracious one	English
Faith	Devotion	English
Elizabeth	God is my oath	Hebrew
William	A willing protector	German
Marie	A French form of Mary.	French
Joy	Happiness	Latin
Jordyn	To descend	Hebrew
Jubilee	Ram's horn	Hebrew
David	Beloved	Hebrew
Robert	Bright fame	German
Diesel	Diminutive form of Matthias or Dietrich	German
Michael	Who is Like God?	Hebrew
Henry	Home ruler	English

Share Your Thoughts

23 Comments

Marissa Nov 27 at 5:00 pm

Strong powerful name. A classic.

Reply
Tashina Jun 26 at 11:09 am

Named my first and only Son after my grandpa Charlie, he raised me as a kid, he was thr biggest influence in my life an how I live today , the only real Father figure I had growing up, I wouldn’t be here with out him and my grandma who raised me toegther. I didn’t plan on having kids , but when I found out I was pregnant, I had a feeling it was going to be a boy and always told my husband should we ever have a son I got to chose the name.

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Trianna Mar 30 at 8:40 am

Free man

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Kaytlyn Feb 27 at 11:25 am

I decided to name my son charlie because that’s my dad’s name and my dad’s grandpa’s name. I love the name charlie because to me.its has a cute tune to it. If you want to make your son charlie do it I promise you won’t regret it if you do 🙂

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Charlie Sep 30 at 8:48 am

We chose the name Charlie Wayne in memory of my husbands uncle who had never got to meet; his name was Charles but he went by Charlie. I being more of an informal person chose to name our son Charlie and not Charles and that is one thing I will say I don’t like about it is that people automatically think his name is Charles and I have to correct them. Other than that his name is perfect. We chose Wayne for the second name since that is his daddy’s middle name.

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Brandy Sep 29 at 5:04 am

Family name

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Desiree Sep 24 at 10:40 am

We liked the name Charles but didn’t want the nickname Chuck. So we went with Charlie. I also like Charlie for a girl so it worked for if we had a boy or girl.

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Jillian Jul 26 at 1:48 pm

Classic

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Amy Aug 29 at 8:00 am

Charlie is named after his late father Charles Silas Llewellyn IV. Charlie’s full name is Charles Silas Llewellyn V

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Mikayla Aug 9 at 5:06 am

Family name and we thought it was a sweet name.

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Sharon May 31 at 2:37 am

I have 2 older children 10&20 so I left it up to them to choose a name and charlie they chose ?

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Sharon Apr 25 at 5:06 am

My other children chose the name

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Katie Jul 19 at 8:51 am

The night my partner and I met, there was a guy at the bar we were at who thought we were high school sweethearts (We’re not! We had literally just met) and was asking us how we’d stayed together so long, what was our secret, etc… And my (now) partner was like, “it’s all about commitment, honesty, compassion…” and I was “like, ummm, yeah!” and that is basically why I decided to get his number and start dating him! (Not because we were easily able to lie to someone together about being high school sweethearts, ha!, but because of what he said is important in a relationship!) … that guy’s name was Charles! So our baby is named after a random guy at a bar … who helped bring his mama and daddy together!

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Megan Jun 22 at 12:40 pm

Family name

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Kelsey Mar 29 at 11:21 am

Charlie is named after his grandpa

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Jessica Hansen Aug 31 at 10:02 pm

My sons full name is Steven Charles Hansen, we call him Charlie. He is named after his dad & grandpa on dad’s side, they’re both named Steven. Both of his great grandpas were named Charles but went by Charlie, hence his nick name. The 2nd reason we call him Charlie is because there are 3 Stevens on his dad side(including him), the only one actually called steven is his grandpa, his dad goes by his middle name too.

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Keyawnie Jul 6 at 7:59 am

His name was picked becausehe was my first boy and I couldn’t think of a better name for him. His name is a family name and he def lives up to it.

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Mama Cata Jun 19 at 10:14 am

My husband’s middle name is Charles. We wanted our baby’s gender to be a surprise until birthing day, so we started calling our baby “Charlie” – a name that could work either way!

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Jessica Jun 9 at 5:40 pm

I really liked the name for a long time, working in childcare my name choices were limited as some names are too popular.

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Jillian Apr 22 at 12:56 pm

Absolutely love the name!! Charles is formal and regal. Charlie is so sweet and playful.

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Melodie Apr 22 at 12:52 pm

named after a great-grandfather

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Amy Apr 13 at 12:08 pm

Our son’s name is Charles but we call him Charlie. Charles was my husband’s grandfather’s name and my grandfather’s middle name but we really just liked the name. Its not super common but not too obscure either.

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Katie Apr 11 at 3:36 pm

Charles was my husband’s dad’s name. He passed away from cancer. We thought the name Charlie would honor him well. I like the name because it’s simple, easy to spell and classic.

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