Kalet
A name of uncertain origin potentially meaning "key" or "hare".
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the first name Kalet. It is a predominantly male name (96.2% of registrations). The average person named Kalet today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kalet births was 2023 (46 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kalet. 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.
People living today
131
~ 1 in 2,616,445 Americans
Peak year
2023
46 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,725
Tracked since 2009
Gender
Gender distribution for Kalet
Kalet leans heavily male at 96.2% of total registrations, but 5 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Kalet as a male name
- Ranked #3,725 in 2024
- 30 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (41 births)
Kalet as a female name
- Ranked #16,309 in 2023
- 5 female births in 2023
- Peak: 2023 (5 births)
Popularity
Kalet: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kalet from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 101 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kalet 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 Kalet during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kalets live
Origin
Meaning and history of Kalet
The name Kalet has its origins in the ancient Semitic cultures of the Middle East, specifically in the region known as Mesopotamia, which encompasses modern-day Iraq, Syria, and parts of Iran and Turkey. The name can be traced back to the Akkadian language, which was spoken in Mesopotamia around the 3rd millennium BCE.
Kalet is believed to derive from the Akkadian word "kalatu," which means "beloved" or "cherished one." This suggests that the name was initially given to children as a term of endearment, expressing the deep love and affection of their parents or guardians.
While there are no definitive records of the name's earliest usage, it is likely that Kalet was a common name among the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations, such as the Sumerians, Babylonians, and Assyrians. These cultures had a rich tradition of naming practices, often drawing inspiration from their deities, natural elements, or desired qualities for their children.
One of the earliest known individuals bearing the name Kalet was a Babylonian scribe who lived during the reign of King Hammurabi in the 18th century BCE. This scribe is mentioned in several cuneiform tablets documenting legal transactions and administrative records of the time.
In later centuries, the name Kalet also appeared in various ancient texts and records from the region. For instance, a Kalet is mentioned in the Epic of Gilgamesh, one of the earliest known literary works from Mesopotamia, dating back to around 2000 BCE.
As the centuries passed, the name Kalet spread to other parts of the Middle East and the Mediterranean region, likely through cultural diffusion and trade routes. In the 5th century BCE, a Greek philosopher named Kalet was known for his teachings on virtue and ethics, although little is known about his life and works.
During the Byzantine era, a notable figure named Kalet ibn al-Muqaffa' lived in the 8th century CE. He was a skilled translator and writer who played a significant role in the transfer of knowledge from Persian and Indian sources to the Arab world, contributing to the flourishing of Islamic culture and literature.
In the 12th century CE, a Sufi mystic and poet named Kalet al-Din Rumi was born in present-day Afghanistan. He is renowned for his spiritual teachings and poetic works, which have had a lasting influence on Persian and Islamic literature and mysticism.
While the name Kalet has become relatively uncommon in modern times, it has left a lasting legacy as a testament to the rich cultural heritage of the ancient Mesopotamian civilizations and the diverse societies that have shaped the Middle East throughout history.
People
Kalet + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kalet 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
Kalet: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kalet?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 131 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kalet 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 2,616,445 US residents.
Is Kalet a common name?
We classify Kalet as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 132 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kalet most popular?
The single biggest year for Kalet was 2023, when 46 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kalet is about 5 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 Kalet in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kalet a male name?
Yes, 96.2% of people registered as Kalet 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 Kalet still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kalet 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 Kalet 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 Americans are named Kalet?
See how many people share the name Kalet on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.