Namewise

Karly vs Malin

Karly and Malincompared on official birth-registration statistics and Namewise's recorded data. This page states what each name's record shows — it never picks a winner or scores one name against the other.

Head to head

Ranks are only compared within one published list and one year. Two ranks from different years, from a boys' and a girls' list, or from different registrars are not comparable, so they are not placed side by side.

  • England and Wales · Girls

    In 2017, Karly was ranked #5765 and Malin #2706 among girls in England and Wales.

Karly and Malin over time

Karly and Malin appear together in 1 published list, across 8 years of shared records. Karly held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Malin in 0.

The order between them changed and held in one of those lists — a change in that published list, never a claim that one name displaced the other.

Karly reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Malin in none. Each position is a place inside its own list, so this compares when they peaked and never how high.

Counted list by list. Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale in the same year, so those comparisons are real — but positions from different lists are not, so nothing here is combined into an overall standing.

List by list

  • England and Wales · Girls8 shared years, 20022017

    Karly held the stronger position in 6 of those years, Malin in 2.

    Highest recorded here: Karly #1718 in 2008, Malin #2120 in 2016.

    The order changed in 2016: Malin moved ahead. In 2015 they stood at #3160 and #4739; by 2016 that had become #4096 and #2120.

    Most recent shared year, 2017: Karly #5765, Malin #2706.

Two names moving past each other in a ranking is a fact about the ranking. Namewise does not claim one name displaced the other, that families chose between them, or that either influenced the other — none of that is in this data.

Side by side

Side-by-side comparison of Karly, Malin
FieldKarlyMalin
Record typeOfficial statistical record (evidence-only)Official statistical record (evidence-only)
Gender usagefemalefemale
MeaningNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
OriginNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
PronunciationNot yet recorded
Syllables22
Common variants / nicknamesNot yet recordedNot yet recorded
Recorded regional usageGB-ENW, GB-NIR, IEGB-ENW, NO
Most recent popularity observationRepublic of Ireland · Girls #871 (2019)Norway · Girls #167 (2025)
Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score)Not yet recordedNot yet recorded
Spelling simplicity (demonstration score)94/10094/100
International familiarity (demonstration score)100/10060/100
Data Confidencemediummedium

What the data shows

  • Karly and Malin both have 2 syllables.
  • Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW.

How each name got here

Karly

Popularity journey

  1. First recorded1996

    First recorded at #1755 among girls in England and Wales in 1996 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.

    England and Wales · Girls

  2. Most recent2019

    Most recently recorded at #871 among girls in Republic of Ireland, in 2019.

    Republic of Ireland · Girls

Malin

Popularity journey

  1. First recorded1966

    First recorded at #530 among girls in Norway in 1966 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.

    Norway · Girls

  2. Highest recorded1966–2025

    Highest recorded position: #3 among girls in Norway, in 1998 (recorded 1966–2025).

    Norway · Girls

  3. Most recent2025

    Most recently recorded at #167 among girls in Norway, in 2025.

    Norway · Girls