Given name & surname · also Ukrainian
Karas
“crucian carp”
Karas is a surname with more than one origin. It is used in English, French, Czech, and Slovak.
Meaning & origin
What it means
As a Slavic and Jewish surname (Polish Karaś, Karas goes back to a word meaning “crucian carp.”
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
Where it comes from
Karas has more than one origin: as a Slavic and Jewish surname (Polish Karaś, it comes from Ukrainian; as a Hungarian surname, it comes from Turkish kara; as a Greek surname, it goes back to a word meaning “black”.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
In English usage, Karas as a surname developed from Kara. In English usage, Karas as a surname developed from Karaś.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 2008. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Karas through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 652
- 652 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2014
- 84 babies
- 2025
- 22
- #4,620 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −54%
- Cooling
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 22 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 4,620 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 53.5% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 84 in 2014. In 2025, Tennessee had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (7). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 781 as a first name in 2020; 4,510 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Karas’s family of names
In English usage, Karas as a surname developed from the Turkish form Kara. In English usage, Karas as a surname has a related form in CARAS. In German usage, Karas has a later derivative in Caris.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Karas has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Upper Sorbian roots to each of them.
5 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
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