How to say it
CAR · ter
ˈkɑr.tɚ
Masculine
Carter
Driver of a cart
What it means
An Old English occupational surname. Like Smith for a smith, Carter named the job before it named the person.
Carter spent eight centuries as a surname for someone who drove a cart for a living, the medieval equivalent of a freight driver. The shift to a given name is recent. The Carter administration (Jimmy Carter, 1977-81) put the surname in front of a generation of American parents, and the surname-as-first-name trend of the 2000s did the rest. Now firmly in the US top fifty for boys, often appearing in sibling sets with other surname-style first names like Hudson, Mason, and Grayson.
How to spell Carter
The standard spelling is Carter. Common variants include Cartier, but Carter is the most widely used form.
Popularity over time
peaked at #24 in 2015, currently #45 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–2025. Reviewed July 2026. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Nickname
No common short, the way most surname-firsts work. Some families use Cart as a casual.
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Jimmy Carter 39th US president, later humanitarian and Nobel laureate
- Aaron Carter American pop singer, 1987-2022
- Carter (ER) Noah Wyle's John Carter, the medical drama's longest-running character
Spelling variants
- Cartier
Names with the same feeling
See Carter from another angle
By style
Common questions
- What does the name Carter mean?
- An Old English occupational surname. Like Smith for a smith, Carter named the job before it named the person.
- What does Carter mean in Old English?
- In Old English, Carter means "Driver of a cart." Carter spent eight centuries as a surname for someone who drove a cart for a living, the medieval equivalent of a freight driver. The shift to a given name is recent. The Carter administration (Jimmy Carter, 1977-81) put the surname in front of a generation of American parents, and the surname-as-first-name trend of the 2000s did the rest. Now firmly in the US top fifty for boys, often appearing in sibling sets with other surname-style first names like Hudson, Mason, and Grayson.
- How do you pronounce Carter?
- Carter is pronounced ˈkɑr.tɚ. Say it as CAR-ter, with the stress on the "car" syllable.
- How do you spell Carter?
- The standard spelling is Carter. Common spelling variants include Cartier.
- Is Carter a boy or girl name?
- Carter is traditionally a masculine name.
- How popular is the name Carter?
- Carter ranked #45 in the U.S. in 2025, according to Social Security Administration data.