Unisex · #11,019 in 2026

Carry

Carry is an English and German feminine given name, nickname and surname, which serves as an alternate form of Carrie and a diminutive form of several names including Carola, Carol, Carlotta, Carolin, Carolina and Caroline. Notable people referred to by this name include the following:

  • English
Current Rank
#11,019
Peak Rank
#2,232 (1975)
Total Babies
1K
5-Yr Trend
Stable
👧 Girl peak #2,232 (1K total)
👦 Boy peak #2,205 (300 total)
👧As Girl Name
1881
First Year
2001
Last Year
1975
Peak Year
#2232
Peak Rank
1K
Total Count
110
Years Active
👦As Boy Name
1894
First Year
1990
Last Year
1964
Peak Year
#2205
Peak Rank
300
Total Count
41
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Carry

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Carry is an English and German feminine given name, nickname and surname, which serves as an alternate form of Carrie and a diminutive form of several names including Carola, Carol, Carlotta, Carolin, Carolina and Caroline. Notable people referred to by this name include the following:

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

  • English

The Story of Carry

As a girl name

American parents first put Carry on the record books as a girl name in 1881, with 6 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1975, when 37 Carrys were born — ranking #2,232 that year. Carry last appeared in the published SSA data in 2001, with 8 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 1K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1880s to the 2020s.

As a boy name

The earliest SSA record of Carry as a boy name dates back to 1894, when 5 babies received it. 1964 was its biggest year on record, with 14 newborns named Carry — #2,205 in the national rankings. About 26% of every Carry on record arrived during the 1960s, its defining decade. Carry last appeared in the published SSA data in 1990, with 6 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 300 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1890s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Girls Boys

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Variants & Related Forms of Carry

Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Carry. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Names that sound like Carry

Phonetically similar names — useful when Carry is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Carry

What does the name Carry mean?
Carry is an English and German feminine given name, nickname and surname, which serves as an alternate form of Carrie and a diminutive form of several names including Carola, Carol, Carlotta, Carolin, Carolina and Caroline. Notable people referred to by this name include the following:
What is the origin of the name Carry?
Carry has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: English.
How popular is Carry in 2026?
In 2026, Carry ranks #11,019 among girls' names in the U.S., with 8 babies given the name that year.
When was Carry most popular?
Carry reached its peak popularity in 1975, ranking #2,232 that year with 37 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Carry most popular?
Carry has historically been most popular in Mississippi, South Carolina, Georgia. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Carry.
Is Carry a unisex name?
Yes — Carry is used for both girls and boys in U.S. records, with about 82% of Carrys assigned female and 18% assigned male historically.
What names go well with Carry?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Carry include Giuseppina, Joelene, Cresta. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.
What are nicknames or variants of Carry?
Common variants and related forms of Carry include Callie, Carla, Carlene, Carlyn, Carol, Carolina. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms.

About the name Carry

Carry is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1881 and has accumulated 1K births in the dataset. Carry's peak popularity came in 1975 when it ranked #2,232. Use the chart and map above to compare Carry's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

  • Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
  • Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
  • Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
  • Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
  • Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.