Karim
Meaning and origin
Wiktionary describes it as a male given name from Arabic. From Arabic كَرِيم (karīm, “noble, generous”).
Source: Wiktionary, English entry for Karim (CC BY-SA 4.0). This is the origin of the name in English; families in Sweden may have taken it from another language.
Popularity in Sweden
Among newborns, Karim has been fairly steady over the last few years. Its best year between 1998 and 2022 was 2022. The figures are for this exact spelling; other spellings of the name are counted on their own.
Years with fewer than two babies (fewer than ten before 2004) show as zero in the chart and as – in the table.
Show the figures
| Year | Boys |
|---|---|
| 1998 | – |
| 1999 | 13 |
| 2000 | 10 |
| 2001 | 13 |
| 2002 | – |
| 2003 | – |
| 2004 | 12 |
| 2005 | 9 |
| 2006 | 6 |
| 2007 | 18 |
| 2008 | 15 |
| 2009 | 12 |
| 2010 | 18 |
| 2011 | 22 |
| 2012 | 18 |
| 2013 | 24 |
| 2014 | 28 |
| 2015 | 29 |
| 2016 | 24 |
| 2017 | 32 |
| 2018 | 30 |
| 2019 | 31 |
| 2020 | 27 |
| 2021 | 26 |
| 2022 | 41 |
Everyone registered in Sweden on 31 December with this as the first name they use.
Show the figures
| Year | Men and boys |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 544 |
| 2000 | 560 |
| 2001 | 595 |
| 2002 | 619 |
| 2003 | 634 |
| 2004 | 654 |
| 2005 | 675 |
| 2006 | 689 |
| 2007 | 733 |
| 2008 | 773 |
| 2009 | 779 |
| 2010 | 800 |
| 2011 | 826 |
| 2012 | 868 |
| 2013 | 924 |
| 2014 | 980 |
| 2015 | 1,056 |
| 2016 | 1,134 |
| 2017 | 1,212 |
| 2018 | 1,276 |
| 2019 | 1,333 |
| 2020 | 1,364 |
Karim in a sentence
- Hej! Jag heter Karim.Hi! My name is Karim.
- Karim bor i Umeå och jobbar som snickare.Karim lives in Umeå and works as a carpenter.
- Vet du om Karim kommer på festen på lördag?Do you know if Karim is coming to the party on Saturday?
- Karims mamma är lärare.Karim's mum is a teacher.
Swedish shows possession with a plain -s and no apostrophe: Karims mamma is Karim's mum.
Related names and other spellings
More names
Questions about Karim
How do you pronounce Karim in Swedish?
Press Listen at the top of the page to hear Karim in your device's Swedish voice.
What does the name Karim mean?
Wiktionary describes it as a male given name from Arabic. From Arabic كَرِيم (karīm, “noble, generous”).
How popular is Karim in Sweden?
41 babies were named Karim in 2022. In 2020, 1,364 people in Sweden had Karim as the first name they go by. Among newborns the name has been fairly steady lately and peaked in 2022 in the years SCB covers (1998–2022).
Popularity figures: Statistics Sweden (SCB), name statistics (BE0001) from the Statistical Database, released as open data under CC0. Each spelling is counted as its own name, as SCB does. SCB's open name statistics end with babies named in 2022 and the population on 31 December 2020; SCB stopped producing name statistics in 2024 and now points to the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) for newer figures.
Origins, IPA and recordings: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), via kaikki.org; recordings from Lingua Libre on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA). Lingolib is not affiliated with SCB or Wiktionary. Sources last checked 7 October 2026.