Keilan
An Irish boy's name with possible meanings of "celestial", "bright-headed", or "bright warrior".
Name Census estimates that about 1,319 living Americans carry the first name Keilan. It is a predominantly male name (96.8% of registrations). The average person named Keilan today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Keilan births was 2011 (68 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Keilan. 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
- • Keilan is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 17 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.3K
~ 1 in 259,859 Americans
Peak year
2011
68 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,550
Tracked since 1976
Gender
Gender distribution for Keilan
Keilan leans heavily male at 96.8% of total registrations, but 43 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Keilan as a male name
- Ranked #3,550 in 2024
- 32 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2007 (64 births)
Keilan as a female name
- Ranked #12,806 in 2012
- 8 female births in 2012
- Peak: 2001 (8 births)
Popularity
Keilan: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Keilan from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 496 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Keilan remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Keilan 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 Keilan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Keilans live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. Texas, Georgia, Alabama recorded the most babies named Keilan, while Virginia, Mississippi, North Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 41 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Keilan
The name Keilan is believed to have originated from the ancient Celtic language and culture. Its roots can be traced back to the early medieval period, around the 5th to 8th centuries AD, when the Celts inhabited parts of modern-day Ireland, Scotland, Wales, and certain regions of continental Europe.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Keilan can be found in the Irish Annals, a collection of historical records dating back to the 6th century. In these annals, Keilan is mentioned as the name of a prominent Irish scholar and monk who lived in the 7th century. However, the exact meaning or etymology of the name is not clearly defined in these ancient texts.
Throughout the centuries, the name Keilan has been associated with various notable historical figures. One of the most famous individuals bearing this name was Keilan of Inishcaltra, an Irish monk and scribe who lived in the 8th century. He is renowned for his contributions to the preservation of ancient manuscripts and his work in the monastic scriptorium on the island of Inishcaltra, located in Lough Derg, Ireland.
Another notable figure with the name Keilan was Keilan of Glendalough, a 10th-century Irish abbot and bishop who served as the head of the monastic community at Glendalough, County Wicklow. He is remembered for his efforts in promoting education and religious studies during his time.
In the 12th century, Keilan of Clonmacnoise, an Irish monk and historian, is recorded as having written an important chronicle documenting the history of Ireland during that period. His work, known as the Annals of Clonmacnoise, provides valuable insights into the events and people of that era.
Moving forward in time, Keilan O'Daly, a 16th-century Irish chieftain and landowner, is another notable figure associated with this name. He played a significant role in the political and military conflicts of his time, defending his lands against English colonization efforts.
While the name Keilan has its roots in the Celtic culture and has a rich history, it has also been adopted and used in various other parts of the world over the centuries. However, its earliest and most prominent associations remain rooted in the ancient Celtic traditions and the historical records of Ireland and Scotland.
People
Keilan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Keilan 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
Keilan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Keilan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,319 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Keilan 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 259,859 US residents.
Is Keilan a common name?
We classify Keilan as "Rare". It ranks above 91.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,335 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Keilan most popular?
The single biggest year for Keilan was 2011, when 68 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Keilan is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Keilan a male name?
Yes, 96.8% of people registered as Keilan 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.
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.