Kaleek
Uncommon name of unclear origin, possibly derived from a Native American language.
Name Census estimates that about 13 living Americans carry the first name Kaleek. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kaleek today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kaleek births was 2000 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kaleek. 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 Kaleek. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
13
~ 1 in 26,365,718 Americans
Peak year
2000
7 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
2002 SSA rank
#10,038
Tracked since 2000
Popularity
Kaleek: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Kaleek 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 Kaleek during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 13 | 0 | 13 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Kaleek
The name Kaleek is believed to have originated from the ancient Sumerian language, which was spoken in the region of Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) during the 3rd millennium BCE. It is thought to be derived from the Sumerian word "kalu," meaning "precious" or "valuable," combined with the suffix "-ek," which was a common ending for personal names in that culture.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kaleek can be found in a cuneiform tablet dating back to around 2500 BCE, which lists a person with this name as a high-ranking official in the city-state of Uruk. This suggests that the name was associated with individuals of significant status and importance in ancient Sumerian society.
In later centuries, the name Kaleek appears to have spread to neighboring regions, including the Akkadian Empire and the Babylonian Empire. It is mentioned in several Akkadian and Babylonian texts, often in connection with scribes, scholars, and other educated individuals.
One notable historical figure bearing the name Kaleek was a renowned Babylonian astronomer and mathematician who lived during the reign of King Nebuchadnezzar II in the 6th century BCE. His contributions to the development of astronomical calculations and the study of the movement of celestial bodies were highly influential in the ancient world.
Another individual with the name Kaleek was a high-ranking priest in the city of Nippur, located in ancient Babylonia, during the 5th century BCE. He was known for his expertise in religious rituals and his role in preserving and transmitting the religious traditions of the region.
In the 3rd century BCE, a Kaleek is mentioned as a respected scholar and philosopher who taught at the famous library of Alexandria in Egypt. His writings on ethics and metaphysics were widely studied and discussed by intellectuals of the time.
During the Islamic Golden Age, a Kaleek ibn al-Rashid lived in the 9th century CE and was a renowned poet and calligrapher in the court of the Abbasid caliph in Baghdad. His intricate calligraphic works and poetic compositions were highly regarded and influenced the development of Arabic literature and art.
Throughout history, the name Kaleek has been associated with individuals who excelled in various fields, such as academia, astronomy, religion, and the arts. While its usage may have declined over time, it remains a name with a rich cultural heritage, deeply rooted in the ancient civilizations of Mesopotamia.
People
Kaleek + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kaleek as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kaleek: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kaleek?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 13 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kaleek 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 26,365,718 US residents.
Is Kaleek a common name?
We classify Kaleek as "Very Rare". It ranks above 33.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 13 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kaleek most popular?
The single biggest year for Kaleek was 2000, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kaleek is about 25 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 Kaleek in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kaleek a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kaleek in the SSA data are male. 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 Kaleek still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kaleek 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 Kaleek 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 share the name Kaleek?
Find out how many Americans are named Kaleek on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.