Where does “Carl” come from?

Carl (English) comes from Middle English carl, from Old English carl, from Old Norse Karl, from Proto-Norse ᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ, from Proto-Germanic karilaz, from Proto-Germanic karaz, from Proto-Indo-European ǵerh₂- — to grow old, to mature.

Carl (English): A student at Carleton College, Minnesota

Definitions

  1. A student at Carleton College, Minnesota

Ancestry of “Carl”, step by step

Carl traces back through 3 separate lines of ancestry.

via Middle English carl

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1Middle EnglishcarlA male person usually in the following senses, especially as a term of address
2Old Englishcarla freeman, a man of middle rank or social class;...
3Old NorseKarlman
4Proto-Norseᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ
5Proto-Germanickarilazfree man, franklin; little man, young man
6Proto-Germanickaraz
7Proto-Indo-Europeanǵerh₂-to grow old, to mature

via Latin Carolus

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1LatinCarolusCharles
2Middle High GermanKarl
3Old High Germankarlman
4Proto-Germanickarlazman, male; free man

via German Karl

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1GermanKarl
2German-chennowadays the most common suffix to create a...
3Middle High German-echen

Words derived from “Carl

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵerh₂-