Carla
Latin at root, with a meaning that reads oddly for a girl's name: "free man". It stays rare in Poland, carried by around 400 women, and most people here have never met a single one.
Carla Pronunciation
Carla is pronounced TSAHR-lah (/ˈt͡sarla/).
What Carla means
Where Carla comes from and what it has meant to the people who carry it.
Carla travels through Latin. Its parent form is Carolus, the name Latin scribes used for Charles, and Carla is the feminine of it. Tradition attaches a plain meaning to the name: free man, wolny człowiek in Polish. That sense is old, and it sits somewhat oddly on a woman's name.
The masculine cognates make the family clear. In Italy there is Carlo, in Spain Carlos, and both run back to the same Latin root. Carolus Magnus, the emperor later called Charlemagne, wore that Latin form when he was crowned in the year 800.
Carla belongs more to Italian and Spanish homes than to any other. It has kept its four letters plain, with no standard diminutive attached to it. On a Polish class register the name reads at once, short and unmistakable after the surname. The meaning stays fixed behind it: free man.
How many people are named Carla
1 in 56501 women in Poland is named Carla. 399 people carry it in the 2025 register: rank #1481 among female names.
Carla's popularity over time
4 girls were given the name in 2025, ranking #1019 among newborns. It has been climbing since 2002.
Where Carla is most popular
Carla is most popular in Masovian, 205% above the national average (8 girls born 2019–2025), followed by Łódź (+113%) and Pomeranian (+83%).
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Masovian8 girls born+205%
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Łódź2 girls born+113%
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Pomeranian2 girls born+83%
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Lower Silesian2 girls born+72%
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Silesian2 girls born+19%
Carla as a middle name
Carla is a first name for 399 women in Poland and a middle name for another 123, a 76/24 split. In the women's middle-name ranking it sits 592nd, between Ava (123) and Zosia (123).
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#590 María124
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#591 Ava123
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#592 Carla123
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#593 Zosia123
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#594 Kumari122