girls' name ★ peaked 1964

Karla

Gender Girl Rank 2025 #803 Trend ↓ Falling 12%

A female given name from the Germanic languages, masculine equivalent Karl.

Rank 2025
#803
among girls · ↓71 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
340
named Karla · -12% vs 2024
How common
1 in 4,727
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1964
2,066 babies
All-time total
91,895
#399 all-time among girls
First recorded
1915
in Social Security records

Karla popularity over time

91,895 babies have been named Karla since 1915, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.380.751.131.518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s 26 – 26 3 – #3,615
1920s 65 – 65 7 +150% #2,957
1930s 536 – 536 54 +725% #611
1940s 3,102 – 3,102 310 +479% #359
1950s 11,462 5 11,467 1,147 +270% #207
1960s 17,716 40 17,756 1,776 +55% #182
1970s 11,367 48 11,415 1,142 -36% #196
1980s 9,360 89 9,449 945 -17% #251
1990s 12,873 88 12,961 1,296 +37% #194
2000s 16,145 39 16,184 1,618 +25% #175
2010s 6,555 – 6,555 656 -59% #325
2020s (to 2025) 2,379 – 2,379 397 -40% #676

Where Karla is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 332 0.21 outside top 500
2027 325 0.20 outside top 500
2028 319 0.20 outside top 500
2029 315 0.20 outside top 500
2030 311 0.19 outside top 500

Where Karla is most popular

Girls named Karla per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.241 per 1,000. Strongest in Arizona, Texas, and District of Columbia.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Karla born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Arizona 67 0.477 +98%
Texas 352 0.438 +81%
District of Columbia 5 0.422 +75%
California 335 0.399 +65%
Florida 156 0.365 +51%
New York 116 0.293 +21%
Maryland 31 0.293 +21%
Tennessee 46 0.290 +20%
New Jersey 51 0.283 +17%
South Carolina 25 0.278 +15%
Colorado 31 0.278 +15%
Illinois 62 0.271 +12%
Georgia 61 0.269 +11%
Arkansas 13 0.246 ≈ national
Utah 20 0.240 ≈ national
Washington 34 0.235 ≈ national
Virginia 40 0.235 ≈ national
North Carolina 49 0.215 -11%
Indiana 29 0.207 -14%
Wisconsin 20 0.194 -20%
Alabama 18 0.192 -21%
Ohio 43 0.181 -25%
Nevada 8 0.172 -29%
Pennsylvania 40 0.169 -30%
Oregon 10 0.154 -36%
Massachusetts 18 0.149 -38%
Kentucky 12 0.140 -42%
Missouri 13 0.108 -55%
Kansas 6 0.104 -57%
Connecticut 6 0.103 -57%
Louisiana 7 0.080 -67%
Minnesota 6 0.056 -77%
Michigan 5 0.027 -89%
Alaska – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Karla

Karla is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #803 in 2025 with 340 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1915, 91,895 American babies have been named Karla. Its peak came in 1964, when 2,066 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1960s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Karla stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Karla?

The median living Karla is about 41 years old; half are between 23 and 60. An estimated 86 thousand people named Karla are alive in the United States today.

median 41 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Karla year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 340 #803 – –
2024 385 #732 – –
2023 398 #711 – –
2022 425 #689 – –
2021 411 #701 – –
2020 420 #676 – –
2019 427 #681 – –
2018 476 #628 – –
2017 553 #557 – –
2016 554 #562 – –
2015 617 #511 – –
2014 621 #504 – –
2013 647 #475 – –
2012 761 #412 – –
2011 910 #353 – –
2010 989 #325 – –
2009 1,116 #298 6 #11,728
2008 1,421 #243 – –
2007 1,581 #219 – –
2006 1,656 #208 6 #11,356
2005 1,716 #203 – –
2004 1,749 #196 8 #8,540
2003 1,780 #179 5 #11,839
2002 1,840 #175 9 #7,347
2001 1,699 #193 – –
2000 1,587 #203 5 #11,305
1995 1,182 #241 8 #6,687
1990 1,002 #276 13 #4,288
1985 902 #278 12 #3,693
1980 1,026 #251 8 #4,730
1975 1,013 #242 – –
1970 1,634 #196 5 #5,092
1965 1,804 #188 10 #2,695
1960 1,655 #206 5 #4,334
1955 1,205 #234 – –
1950 592 #319 – –
1945 319 #397 – –
1940 137 #592 – –
1935 38 #1,148 – –
1930 10 #2,947 – –
1925 10 #3,238 – –
1920 5 #5,353 – –
1915 7 #3,615 – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Karla

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Karla Homolka Canadian woman convicted of manslaughter and ex-wife of Paul Bernardo (born 1970) Contemporary
  2. 2 Karla Souza Karla Souza Mexican actress (born 1985) Contemporary
  3. 3 Karla Álvarez Mexican actress (1972–2013) Contemporary
  4. 4 Karla Avelar Karla Avelar Salvadoran human rights activist b. 1978 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Karla, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Karla?

The median living Karla is about 41 years old. Half of all living Karlas are between 23 and 60 years old.

How many people named Karla are alive today?

An estimated 86 thousand people named Karla are alive in the United States, based on 91,895 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Karla mean?

A female given name from the Germanic languages, masculine equivalent Karl.

How popular is the name Karla in 2025?

Karla ranked #803 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 340 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Karla?

91,895 babies have been named Karla in the United States since 1915, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Karla most popular?

Karla peaked in 1964, when 2,066 newborns received the name.

Is Karla a boy or girl name?

Karla is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Karla rising or falling?

Karla is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Karla become more popular?

Karla is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 311 girls named Karla in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Karla?

Well-known people named Karla include Karla Homolka (extremist), Karla Souza (actor), Karla Álvarez (actor).

Names like Karla

Names that sound and feel close to Karla: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Karla with similar names → More names starting with K →