Carter

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Carter

Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Carter comes from a Middle English occupational surname meaning “One Who Uses a Cart.” It ultimately comes from the Old Norse term “kartr.” A carter would be someone who transported goods on a cart.
-or-
It comes from a Norman French occupational surname Cartier, meaning “Charioteer.”
-or-
Occasionally, Carter is an Anglicization of the Scottish Gaelic surname Mac Artair, meaning “Son of Arthur.”

History:
Carter is another example of an English occupational surname, transferred for use as a first name.

Originally, it would have been bestowed upon sons as either a first or a middle name in order to honor the Carter surname. For example, a woman named Mary Carter who married a man named John Smith, may name her son John Carter Smith, or merely Carter Smith. This custom had pretty much died out by the mid-20th century, but because the surname Carter is fairly common, it lasted longer than most.

Carter was strongly revived in the 1990s, when giving surnames for first names was trendy, and when the suffix sound “uhr” was also popular. The name may have been helped by the 1994 debut of the hospital drama ER, featuring a popular character named Dr. Carter, referred to simply as “Carter.”

Pronunciation: cart-urr.

Famous Bearers:
Educators, Scholars, and Social Workers:
Carter Goodwin Woodson (1875-1950)
African-American educator.

Political Figures:
Carter Braxton (1736-1797)
A signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Carter Glass (1858-1946)
American politician.

Singers and Entertainers:
Carter Glen Stanley (1925-1966)
American bluegrass singer.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.009 % of males named Carter

0.162 % surnamed Carter

Popularity of Carter:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1850: 351st most popular.
1875: 530th most popular.
1880: N/A
1881: 503rd most popular.
1882: N/A
1883: 557th most popular.
1884: 520th most popular.
1885: 606th most popular.
1886: 470th most popular.
1887: 488th most popular.
1888: 505th most popular.
1889: 581st most popular.
1890: 739th most popular.
1891: 497th most popular.
1892: 460th most popular.
1893: 538th most popular.
1894: 502nd most popular.
1895: 739th most popular.
1896: 593rd most popular.
1897: 496th most popular.
1898: 574th most popular.
1899: 521st most popular.
1900: 404th most popular.
1901: 567th most popular.
1902: 687th most popular.
1903: 411th most popular.
1904: 417th most popular.
1905: 592nd most popular.
1906: 612th most popular.
1907: 591st most popular.
1908: 489th most popular.
1909: 557th most popular.
1910: 555th most popular.
1911: 595th most popular.
1912: 606th most popular.
1913: 777th most popular.
1914: 509th most popular.
1915: 657th most popular.
1916: 633rd most popular.
1917: 620th most popular.
1918: 634th most popular.
1919: 580th most popular.
1920: 636th most popular.
1921: 727th most popular.
1922: 667th most popular.
1923: 706th most popular.
1924: 604th most popular.
1925: 678th most popular.
1926: 664th most popular.
1927: 709th most popular.
1928: 728th most popular.
1929: 751st most popular.
1930: 824th most popular.
1931: 681st most popular.
1932: 753rd most popular.
1933: 674th most popular.
1934: 597th most popular.
1935: 576th most popular.
1936: 577th most popular.
1937: 579th most popular.
1938: 568th most popular.
1939: 682nd most popular.
1940: 634th most popular.
1941: 570th most popular.
1942: 586th most popular.
1943: 561st most popular.
1944: 545th most popular.
1945: 526th most popular.
1946: 531st most popular.
1947: 502nd most popular.
1948: 541st most popular.
1949: 497th most popular.
1950: 516th most popular.
1951: 520th most popular.
1952: 557th most popular.
1953: 559th most popular.
1954: 528th most popular.
1955: 612th most popular.
1956: 569th most popular.
1957: 647th most popular.
1958: 600th most popular.
1959: 664th most popular.
1960: 664th most popular.
1961: 674th most popular.
1962: 677th most popular.
1963: 622nd most popular.
1964: 671st most popular.
1965: 696th most popular.
1966: 657th most popular.
1967: 634th most popular.
1968: 678th most popular.
1969: 646th most popular.
1970: 663rd most popular.
1971: 603rd most popular.
1972: 617th most popular.
1973: 707th most popular.
1974: 686th most popular.
1975: 654th most popular.
1976: 653rd most popular.
1977: 779th most popular.
1978-1979: N/A
1980: 961st most popular.
1981: 983rd most popular.
1982: 822nd most popular.
1983: 814th most popular.
1984: 746th most popular.
1985: 670th most popular.
1986: 665th most popular.
1987: 622nd most popular.
1988: 569th most popular.
1989: 566th most popular.
1990: 575th most popular.
1991: 518th most popular.
1992: 468th most popular.
1993: 427th most popular.
1994: 435th most popular.
1995: 295th most popular.
1996: 245th most popular.
1997: 209th most popular.
1998: 189th most popular.
1999: 180th most popular.
2000: 155th most popular.
2001: 112th most popular.
2002: 108th most popular.
2003: 102nd most popular.
2004: 87th most popular.

Selected Sources:
A Dictionary of English Surnames, Reaney and Wilson, 1990
American Surnames, Smith, 1994
The Penguin Dictionary of First Names, Pickering, 1999
A Dictionary of First Names, Hanks and Hodges, 1990

The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 (www.ssa.gov) - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880, and other information (it is available on-line at www.familysearch.org)