Cairi
A feminine name of Celtic origin meaning "from the marsh or wetlands".
Name Census estimates that about 43 living Americans carry the first name Cairi. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 76.7% of registrations being female. The average person named Cairi today is around 11 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cairi births was 2012 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cairi. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Cairi. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
43
~ 1 in 7,971,031 Americans
Peak year
2012
9 babies that year
Average age
11
years old
2024 SSA rank
#12,588
Tracked since 2011
Gender
Gender distribution for Cairi
Cairi is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 43 total registrations, 10 (23.3%) were male and 33 (76.7%) were female.
Cairi as a male name
- Ranked #12,588 in 2024
- 5 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2020 (5 births)
Cairi as a female name
- Ranked #16,327 in 2017
- 5 female births in 2017
- Peak: 2012 (9 births)
Popularity
Cairi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cairi from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 33 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Cairi remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cairi by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Cairi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cairi
The name Cairi has its origins in the ancient Celtic language spoken by the Brittonic Celts who inhabited the British Isles during the Iron Age. The name is derived from the Proto-Celtic word "kairī", meaning "beloved" or "dear one". It is believed to have been a popular name among the Britons, particularly in the regions now known as Wales and Cornwall.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cairi can be found in the Mabinogion, a collection of medieval Welsh prose stories dating back to the 12th or 13th century. In the tale of Culhwch and Olwen, a character named Cairi ap Rhiogan is mentioned as one of King Arthur's warriors.
During the Middle Ages, the name Cairi gained popularity among the Welsh nobility. One notable figure bearing this name was Cairi ap Gwrgenau, a 12th-century Welsh prince and ruler of the Kingdom of Rhwng Gwy a Hafren (between the rivers Wye and Severn).
In the 16th century, a Welsh bard and poet named Cairi Siencyn is known to have composed several works, including a collection of poems titled "Cywyddau Cairi Siencyn". He lived during the reign of Henry VIII and was a prominent figure in the literary circles of his time.
Another historical figure with the name Cairi was Cairi Llwyd, a 17th-century Welsh Puritan minister and writer. He was known for his religious works and his efforts to promote the use of the Welsh language in religious services.
In more recent times, the name Cairi has been less common, but there are still a few notable individuals who bear this name. Cairi Davies, a Welsh actress born in 1988, is known for her roles in television series such as "Casualty" and "Sherlock".
While the name Cairi has its roots in ancient Celtic culture, it has endured through the centuries and continues to be used, albeit relatively rarely, in modern times. Its meaning of "beloved" or "dear one" remains a testament to the cultural heritage and linguistic traditions of the Welsh people.
People
Cairi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cairi as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cairi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cairi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 43 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cairi going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 7,971,031 US residents.
Is Cairi a common name?
We classify Cairi as "Very Rare". It ranks above 52.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 43 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cairi most popular?
The single biggest year for Cairi was 2012, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cairi is about 11 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Cairi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cairi a female name?
Yes, 76.7% of people registered as Cairi in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Cairi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cairi in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Cairi can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Cairi?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.