The District of Carrick today forms part of South Ayrshire, Scotland. The word Carrick comes from the Gaelic word Carraig, meaning rock or rocky place. Maybole was the historic capital of Carrick. The original county of Ayrshire was divided naturally by its rivers. It was therefore divided into the three districts of Cunninghame in the north along the River Irvine , in the center by the River Kyle and Kyle in the south along the River Doon by the District of Carrick. These three districts formed Ayrshire, one of the traditional counties of Scotland.

The Earldom of Carrick was home to Scotland's famous Bruce family. Robert de Bruce, the 6th Lord of Region of Annandale, Scotland, acquired the Earldom as a result of his 1274 marriage to the widow, Margaret de Bruce, 3rd Countess of Carrick. Their son became King Robert I of Scotland, more commonly known as Robert the Bruce.

Kyle and Carrick was the former name (1975-96) of a local government district in the Strathclyde Region of Scotland. In 1996 it was constituted as a Unitary Authority, but renamed South Ayrshire.