girls' name ★ peaked 2007

Keeley

Meaning descendant of Caollaidhe Gender Girl · 1% boys Rank 2025 #1,567 Trend ↑ Rising 147%

Reduced Anglicized from Irish Ó Caollaidhe (“descendant of Caollaidhe”), a personal name based on the adjective caol (“slender, graceful”).

Rank 2025
#1,567
among girls · ↑5 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
135
named Keeley
How common
1 in 11,906
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2007
253 babies
All-time total
6,741
#2,127 all-time among girls
First recorded
1957
in Social Security records

Keeley popularity over time

6,741 babies have been named Keeley since 1957, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.040.080.110.1518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s 52 – 52 5 – #1,968
1960s 174 5 179 18 +244% #2,328
1970s 306 17 323 32 +80% #2,140
1980s 734 – 734 73 +127% #1,347
1990s 1,403 12 1,415 142 +93% #900
2000s 2,072 15 2,087 209 +47% #988
2010s 1,285 – 1,285 129 -38% #1,134
2020s (to 2025) 666 – 666 111 -14% #1,527

Where Keeley is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 154 0.10 outside top 500
2027 172 0.11 outside top 500
2028 190 0.12 outside top 500
2029 206 0.13 outside top 500
2030 220 0.14 outside top 500

Where Keeley is most popular

Girls named Keeley per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.077 per 1,000. Strongest in Kansas, Washington, and Illinois.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Keeley born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Kansas 11 0.191 +148%
Washington 23 0.159 +107%
Illinois 35 0.153 +99%
Pennsylvania 32 0.135 +76%
Ohio 27 0.114 +48%
Oregon 7 0.108 +40%
Iowa 6 0.103 +34%
North Carolina 23 0.101 +32%
Minnesota 10 0.093 +21%
Colorado 10 0.090 +17%
Massachusetts 10 0.083 +8%
Tennessee 12 0.076 ≈ national
New Jersey 11 0.061 -21%
Wisconsin 6 0.058 -24%
California 46 0.055 -29%
Texas 36 0.045 -42%
Indiana 6 0.043 -44%
Florida 17 0.040 -48%
New York 12 0.030 -61%
Virginia 5 0.029 -62%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Idaho – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Michigan – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Keeley

Keeley is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #1,567 in 2025 with 135 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1957, 6,741 American babies have been named Keeley. Its peak came in 2007, when 253 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2000s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Keeley stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Keeley?

The median living Keeley is about 22 years old; half are between 14 and 32. An estimated 6,600 people named Keeley are alive in the United States today.

median 22 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Keeley year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 135 #1,567 – –
2024 135 #1,572 – –
2023 140 #1,527 – –
2022 122 #1,717 – –
2021 91 #2,097 – –
2020 43 #3,522 – –
2019 51 #3,147 – –
2018 79 #2,317 – –
2017 84 #2,246 – –
2016 83 #2,296 – –
2015 104 #1,943 – –
2014 149 #1,500 – –
2013 173 #1,348 – –
2012 159 #1,441 – –
2011 187 #1,274 – –
2010 216 #1,134 – –
2009 236 #1,084 – –
2008 246 #1,064 – –
2007 253 #1,041 – –
2006 201 #1,205 – –
2005 166 #1,326 5 #12,429
2004 161 #1,326 – –
2003 186 #1,166 – –
2002 223 #988 – –
2001 187 #1,126 5 #11,500
2000 213 #995 5 #11,328
1995 96 #1,581 – –
1990 112 #1,415 – –
1985 68 #1,696 – –
1980 53 #1,991 – –
1975 25 #2,915 – –
1970 26 #2,740 – –
1965 10 #4,341 – –
1960 16 #3,148 – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Keeley

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Keeley Hawes Keeley Hawes British actress (born 1976) Contemporary
  2. 2 Keeley Hazell Keeley Hazell English model, writer and actress (born 1986) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Keeley, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Keeley?

The median living Keeley is about 22 years old. Half of all living Keeleys are between 14 and 32 years old.

How many people named Keeley are alive today?

An estimated 6,600 people named Keeley are alive in the United States, based on 6,741 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Keeley mean?

Reduced Anglicized from Irish Ó Caollaidhe (“descendant of Caollaidhe”), a personal name based on the adjective caol (“slender, graceful”).

How popular is the name Keeley in 2025?

Keeley ranked #1,567 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 135 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Keeley?

6,741 babies have been named Keeley in the United States since 1957, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Keeley most popular?

Keeley peaked in 2007, when 253 newborns received the name.

Is Keeley a boy or girl name?

Keeley is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 99% of babies with the name.

Is the name Keeley rising or falling?

Keeley has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Keeley become more popular?

Keeley is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 220 girls named Keeley in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Keeley?

Well-known people named Keeley include Keeley Hawes (actor), Keeley Hazell (model).

Names like Keeley

Names that sound and feel close to Keeley: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Keeley with similar names → More names starting with K →