Charlaine as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Charlaine

What is the meaning of the name Charlaine ?

The baby name Charlaine is a girl name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced shar-LAYN.

Charlaine is English, French, Germanic in Origin.

Charlaine is a modern feminine form in the Charles family, shaped by French-looking spelling but ultimately Germanic. Its root is Old High German or Frankish Karl, also seen in Latinized Carolus and Old French Charles. Karl denoted a man, husband, or free non-noble man; the later gloss free man reflects its contrast with servile status. Charlaine adds a feminine ending resembling French -aine to the Charl- stem, rather than forming from French words for dear or fabric.

The spelling appears chiefly in English-speaking records from the early twentieth century, alongside Charlene, Charline, and Charlène. In France, Charline and Charlène are the more regular forms, while Charlaine has remained uncommon. American Social Security data show small numbers from 1918, with its highest single year in 1935 and a concentration among mid-twentieth-century births. The best-known bearer is American novelist Charlaine Harris, whose given name illustrates the Southern U.S. taste for elaborated feminine forms of established names.