Etymology

Carolina

C3A1R1O1L1I1N1A1

Today it means: A female given name from Latin, Latinate form of Caroline; rare in English. Full definition →

Latin Carolīna ← Italian Carolina ← Proto-Germanic *karilaz
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*ǵerh₂-
  2. Proto-Germanic*karaz
  3. Proto-Germanic*karilaz
  4. LatinCarolus
  5. LatinCarolīna
  6. ItalianCarolina
  7. LatinCarolīna
  8. English todayCarolina

From Italian Carolina or its etymon Latin Carolīna, from Carolus (“Charles”) + -īna (feminine diminutive suffix). By surface analysis, Carol (male given name) + -ina (feminine diminutive suffix). Doublet of Caroline. The U.S. states are named for Charles I of England.

Words from the same roots

ItalianCarolina all →

caroline

LatinCarolīna all →

caroline

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.