To some, Charlie is a boy name. It’s a nickname for the male name Charles.
To others, Charlie is a girl name. It’s a feminine form of Charles, just like Charlene and Charlotte are feminine forms of Charles.
How are parents actually using the name Charlie nowadays?
Well, if we look only at the spelling “Charlie,” the boys are on top. Of the 1,727 U.S. babies named Charlie last year, 1,242 (72%) were boys and 485 (28%) were girls.
But if we count all versions of the name, the girls take the lead:
| Name | # of Boys | # of Girls |
|---|---|---|
| Charlie | 1,242 | 485 |
| Charlee | 7 | 395 |
| Charley | 90 | 277 |
| Charli | 17 | 236 |
| Charleigh | 0 | 180 |
| Charly | 52 | 70 |
| Charlea | 0 | 14 |
| Charlye | 0 | 12 |
| Charle | 0 | 5 |
| Charlei | 0 | 5 |
| Charliegh | 0 | 5 |
| TOTAL | 1,408 (46%) | 1,684 (54%) |
In England and Wales, where Charlie (ranked 7th) is so popular that it beats Charles (ranked 58th) by over 4,000 babies, Charlie is still mainly a boy name:
| Name | # of Boys | # of Girls |
|---|---|---|
| Charlie | 5,409 | 208 |
| Charley | 102 | 164 |
| Charlee | 8 | 27 |
| Charli | 4 | 26 |
| Charleigh | 0 | 18 |
| Charly | 7 | 12 |
| Charlea | 0 | 3 |
| TOTAL | 5,530 (92%) | 458 (8%) |
This makes me think Charlie could be headed the way of Ashley (i.e. becoming feminine in the States, remaining masculine in the UK).
To you, is Charlie a girl name or a boy name? (Or is it a unisex name?) Please also mention where you live–it’ll be interesting to see if/how responses differ based on location.
