In a few years, an ancient, very masculine king’s first name has become one of the
mixed first names the most given to little girls in France. According to The Official First Names 2024it is now in the top 20 nationally for women, while it remained almost absent among baby girls in the early 2000s. A strong sign of this shift, around 70% of children who wear it today are girls, compared to a minority of boys, according to the same statistics.
This first name is Charliea familiar form from Charles, a first name of Germanic origin which means “strength”. Charles has long been associated with power: from Charles Martel, a major figure of the 8th century, to the kings of France numbered from Charles VI to Charles X, to King Charles III in the United Kingdom. Behind Charlie, there is therefore the aura of an authentic
royal first namenow worn massively by girls.
Charlie, from silent cinema to classrooms
If his ancestor Charles was born into royal families, it was cinema that brought Charlie into popular culture. The first name became known with the actor and director Charlie Chaplin. “A handful of French people were born for the first time under this name in 1917”, specify Stéphanie Rapoport and Claire Tabarly Perrin in The Official First Names 2024 (First editions). After Charlie Chaplin’s death in 1977, the first name really began to take hold in civil registers.
Children’s literature and cinema then gave it a boost. In 1987, the albums Where’s Charlie
revive interest in this unisex first name. Then a peak appears among boys at the time of the success of the film Charlie and the Chocolate Factory by Tim Burton, adapted from the novel by Roald Dahl. “the first name Charlie is today the 101st most given female first name in France since the year 2000. This first name is given to almost one in 170 girls (compared to one in 460 boys) today. Charly, in 146th place, is given to one in 370 boys”, specifies
The Official First Names 2024 (First editions).
When Charlie really switches to the girls’ side
According to The Official First Names 2024the turning point occurred at the beginning of the 2010s: from 2012, Charlie became predominantly female in France. Today, around 70% of people named Charlie are girls, making it one of the most feminized mixed names around. The curves published by INSEE on first names since 1900 confirm this rapid rise among girls, while the Charly variant remains rather associated with boys.
This dynamic was slowed down in 2015: after the attack on Charlie Hebdo, The Official First Names 2024 notes approximately 50% fewer births, among both girls and boys. The decline is spectacular but temporary, because Charlie then regained its place, to the point of joining the top 20 of the most given female first names in the country.
Charlie, a name for tomorrow
For parents, choosing Charlie for a daughter combines sweetness, history and international modernity.