| Carys | Elin | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Love | Light |
| Origin | welsh | Welsh |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | KA-ris | EL-in |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1991 | 1893 |
| Peak year | 2006 (196) | 2011 (428) |
| In 2025 | 32 | 53 |
| Trend | Declining | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Carys | Elin |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 189 | 553 |
| 2010s | 933 | 3,032 |
| 2000s | 1,123 | 369 |
| 1990s | 82 | 143 |
| 1980s | 0 | 145 |
| 1970s | 0 | 111 |
| 1960s | 0 | 109 |
| 1950s | 0 | 138 |
| 1940s | 0 | 164 |
| 1930s | 0 | 77 |
| 1920s | 0 | 85 |
| 1910s | 0 | 87 |
| 1900s | 0 | 25 |
| 1890s | 0 | 14 |
A modern Welsh name formed from the stem of the verb caru 'to love' (compare car 'beloved friend', cariad 'love'). A genuine Welsh 'love' root; the variant Cerys is read the same way.
Elin is the Welsh form of Helen, “light” or “torch.”
Elin is more popular than Carys today: about 53 US babies were given the name Elin in 2025, compared with 32 named Carys.
Carys means Love (welsh origin), while Elin means Light (Welsh origin).
In US records, Carys first appears in 1991 and Elin in 1893, so Elin has the longer recorded history.