Carla

“Variant of Carl — Free man” — Germanic (Old Norse) origin

Girl's name · #1082 in the US (2025) · Retro

Carla has appeared in US records since 1890 — best rank #76 (1965) · 150,390 babies named Carla all-time · 1 in 7,100 girls born in 2025.

Around the world: #15 in Spain (2024).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 20 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Carlas

Carla Bruni — Italian and French singer, model and spouse of former president of France
Carla Gugino — American actress
Carla Del Ponte — International jurist
Carla Suárez Navarro — Spanish tennis player
Carla Bley — American jazz composer, pianist, organist and bandleader (1936–2023)

In stories & tradition

Carla Espinosa — Scrubs
Carla Connor — Coronation Street
Carla Hughes — Winners & Losers

What Carlas become

Among 1,546 notable people named Carla:

Entertainers appear 1.61× more often than among typical names — e.g. Carla Bruni, Italian and French singer, model and spouse of former president of France.

Browse more girl names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.