Carlile
A surname taken from the place name Carlisle, in northern England.
The #7,061 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 65,150 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Carlile is a spelling variant of Carlisle, the town and county town of Cumberland (now in Cumbria). The name is locational: it was used for someone who came from Carlisle or had some connection with that place. The place-name itself is older and is usually traced to a Celtic or Brittonic element plus a Roman-era or later settlement name, though the exact deep origin is debated.
History
Historical surname writers note that the form crossed the border into Scotland and then developed a few spelling variants, including Carlile. The name appears alongside Carlisle in older surname lists and indexes, showing that both forms were in circulation by the 19th century. As with many locational surnames, the spelling could vary quite a bit before standardization.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
19th-century surname compilers specifically remarked that Carlile is just a slight spelling change from Carlisle.
From the historical record
“CARLILE AND STERLING, EMERSON, NEAL AND BCNYAN. EDGAR A. POE, EDMO.VD BURKE, SIR EDW. LYTTON BULWBB,”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names