Carma
Carma is a feminine name of uncertain origin, possibly derived from "karma".
Name Census estimates that about 2,368 living Americans carry the first name Carma. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Carma today is around 52 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Carma births was 1961 (76 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Carma. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Carma with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
2.4K
~ 1 in 144,744 Americans
Peak year
1961
76 babies that year
Average age
52
years old
2024 SSA rank
#11,277
Tracked since 1897
Census
Carma in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,751 people with the first name Carma, which placed it at #5,981 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#5,981
National first-name rank
People counted
2.8K
2,751 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.9
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
77.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Carma
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Carma is White at 77.2%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Carma described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Carma at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.2% · 2,123
- Black or African American11.1% · 305
- Two or more races4.9% · 135
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 132
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 45
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 11
Popularity
Carma: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Carma from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 623 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Carma by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Carma during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Carmas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 14 states and territories. Utah, Idaho, Ohio recorded the most babies named Carma, while Florida, Illinois, Arkansas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 78 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Carma
The name Carma originates from the Sanskrit language and is derived from the word "karma," which means "action" or "deed." The concept of karma is central to Indian philosophy and religions, particularly Hinduism and Buddhism. It refers to the principle that one's actions have consequences that shape their future lives or existences.
In Hinduism, the name Carma is often associated with the cycle of birth, death, and rebirth known as samsara. It is believed that one's karma, or the sum of their actions in this life, determines the circumstances of their next life. A person with good karma is likely to be reborn into a favorable situation, while those with negative karma may face challenges or hardships.
The earliest recorded use of the name Carma can be traced back to ancient Sanskrit texts, such as the Upanishads and the Bhagavad Gita, which are among the most sacred Hindu scriptures. These texts delve into the concept of karma and its implications for spiritual growth and liberation.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Carma. One of the earliest recorded figures was Carma Devi, a Hindu princess who lived in the 7th century CE. She was known for her devotion to spirituality and her charitable works, which were believed to have earned her positive karma.
Another prominent figure was Carma Rinpoche, a Tibetan Buddhist lama who lived in the 16th century. He was renowned for his teachings on the principles of karma and was instrumental in preserving and propagating Buddhist traditions in Tibet.
In more recent times, Carma Chagme Rinpoche (1920-2003) was a highly respected Tibetan Buddhist teacher and author who wrote extensively on the subject of karma and its application in daily life. His works have been widely translated and studied by both Buddhists and non-Buddhists alike.
Carma Norbu (1913-1992) was a Tibetan scholar and writer who made significant contributions to the preservation of Tibetan culture and literature. He wrote extensively on the concept of karma and its role in shaping the Tibetan worldview.
Carma Shastri (1925-2011) was an Indian scholar and philosopher who specialized in the study of ancient Hindu texts and the interpretation of karma. He authored several books and articles exploring the nuances of this concept and its practical implications for personal growth and spiritual development.
While the name Carma has its roots in ancient Indian philosophy and spirituality, it has transcended cultural boundaries and gained recognition worldwide as a name that represents the interconnectedness of actions and consequences, as well as the pursuit of spiritual growth and enlightenment.
People
Carma + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Carma as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Carma: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Carma?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,368 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Carma going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 144,744 US residents.
Is Carma a common name?
We classify Carma as "Rare". It ranks above 94.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 4,159 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Carma most popular?
The single biggest year for Carma was 1961, when 76 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Carma is about 52 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Carma in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,751 people with the name Carma, or 0.91 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #5,981 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Carma in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Carma?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Carma appears almost entirely female. Of the 2,753 people counted with this name, 99.6% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Carma?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Carma is White at 77.2%. The next largest groups are Black (11.1%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Carma most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Carma in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.2% (2,123 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Carma in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Carma a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Carma in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Carma still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Carma in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Carma can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Carma?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.