Keltan
An invented name derived from Celtic roots meaning "powerful warrior".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Keltan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Keltan today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Keltan births was 2008 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Keltan. 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 Keltan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2008
5 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2008 SSA rank
#13,632
Tracked since 2008
Popularity
Keltan: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Keltan 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 Keltan 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 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Keltan
The name Keltan has its origins in ancient Celtic cultures, tracing back to the early medieval period around the 5th to 7th centuries. It is derived from the Celtic root words "kel" meaning "bright" or "shining" and "tan" meaning "fire" or "flame." The name was likely first used by Celtic tribes inhabiting regions of what is now Britain, Ireland, and parts of continental Europe.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Keltan can be found in the ancient Welsh text "Culhwch and Olwen," a medieval prose tale from the Mabinogion collection dating back to around the 11th century. In this text, Keltan is mentioned as a warrior and companion to the hero Culhwch. It's believed that the name was fairly common among Celtic warriors and chieftains during this time period.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Keltan appeared sporadically in various historical records and chronicles. Notably, a Keltan of Cornubia (Cornwall) was mentioned as a notable figure in the 9th century Annals of Inisfallen, an ancient Irish chronicle. Another individual named Keltan mac Bran is recorded as a King of Leinster in the 12th century, indicating the name's use among Irish nobility.
In the 13th century, a Keltan ap Rhys was a prominent Welsh landowner and nobleman, mentioned in several contemporary documents from the time. Keltan ap Rhys played a role in the Welsh resistance against the English conquest of Wales during the reign of Edward I.
Another significant figure bearing the name Keltan was Keltan of Perthshire, a Scottish warrior and clan leader who fought alongside Robert the Bruce during the Wars of Scottish Independence in the early 14th century. Keltan of Perthshire is celebrated in several Scottish ballads and folk tales from that era.
During the Renaissance period, a notable individual named Keltan Macgregor was a Scottish poet and bard in the late 16th century. His works, though largely lost, were said to have influenced the development of Scottish literature and poetry during that time.
People
Keltan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Keltan 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
Keltan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Keltan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Keltan 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Keltan a common name?
We classify Keltan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Keltan most popular?
The single biggest year for Keltan was 2008, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Keltan is about 18 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 Keltan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Keltan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Keltan 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 Keltan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Keltan 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 Keltan 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 Keltan?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Keltan at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.