Where does “Carly” come from?

Carly is of uncertain origin, possibly related to English carl, a word of Germanic origin meaning "man" or "fellow."

Ancestry of “Carly”, step by step

StepLanguageWordMeaning
1EnglishCarlA student at Carleton College, Minnesota
2Middle EnglishcarlA male person usually in the following senses, especially as a term of address
3Old Englishcarla freeman, a man of middle rank or social class;...
4Old NorseKarlman
5Proto-Norseᚲᚨᚱᛁᛚᚨᛉ
6Proto-Germanickarilazfree man, franklin; little man, young man
7Proto-Germanickaraz
8Proto-Indo-Europeanǵerh₂-to grow old, to mature

Words derived from “Carly

Every word from Proto-Indo-European ǵerh₂-