Karel (given name)

Infobox Given Name Revised
name = Karel


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Karel is a given name in Czech or Dutch, equivalent to Charles.

Among the Czechs

Among the Czechs Karel (diminutives Karlík, Karlíček and Kája) is used frequently. In 2006 124,784 Karel's lived in the Czech Republic making the name the 13th the most popular (almost 40% of the most popular Jiří). [cite web|url=http://www.mvcr.cz/sprava/informat/cetnost/2006/jm_20nej_m.html|title=Most frequent Czech male names|language=Czech|publisher=Czech Statistical Office|accessdate=2007-12-07] Between 1999-2002 number of Karel's in the Czech Republic dropped by 2.7% and the name does not appear among the 20 most popular newborn child names anymore [cite web|url=http://www.czso.cz/csu/redakce.nsf/i/srovnani_krestni_jmena_2006|title=Comparison of Czech newborn child names between 1999-2006|language=Czech|publisher=Czech Statistical Office|accessdate=2007-12-07]

Feminine version of the name Karla (diminutive Karlička) is used infrequently.

Among the many known Czechs with this given name are poet Karel Hynek Mácha, journalist Karel Havlíček Borovský, writer Karel Čapek (Karel programming language was named after him) or singer Karel Gott (nicknamed "božský Karel", "godlike Karel", a pun on his popularity and surname which means The God in German). Among the historical rulers Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor (Karel IV) has the strongest association with the name.

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