Baby Names US
girls' name ★ peaked 1997

Keely

Meaning A female given name transferred from the surname Gender Girl Rank 2025 #2,737 Trend ↑ Rising 10%

A female given name transferred from the surname.

Rank 2025
#2,737
among girls · ↓676 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
63
named Keely · -33% vs 2024
How common
1 in 25,512
girls born in 2025
Peak year
1997
555 babies
All-time total
12,719
#1,445 all-time among girls
First recorded
1957
in Social Security records

Keely popularity over time

12,719 babies have been named Keely 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
0.10.20.30.418801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
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 210 – 210 21 – #967
1960s 741 – 741 74 +253% #966
1970s 1,305 – 1,305 131 +76% #822
1980s 1,733 5 1,738 174 +33% #794
1990s 3,342 6 3,348 335 +93% #455
2000s 3,659 10 3,669 367 +10% #610
2010s 1,258 – 1,258 126 -66% #1,144
2020s (to 2025) 450 – 450 75 -40% #2,061

Where Keely 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 64 0.04 outside top 500
2027 64 0.04 outside top 500
2028 65 0.04 outside top 500
2029 65 0.04 outside top 500
2030 66 0.04 outside top 500

The story of Keely

Keely is rare for girls in the United States, ranked #2,737 in 2025 with 63 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1957, 12,719 American babies have been named Keely. Its peak came in 1997, when 555 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

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 Keely stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Keely?

The median living Keely is about 28 years old; half are between 19 and 39. An estimated 12 thousand people named Keely are alive in the United States today.

median 28 020406080100

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

Keely 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 63 #2,737 – –
2024 94 #2,061 – –
2023 66 #2,658 – –
2022 87 #2,183 – –
2021 73 #2,451 – –
2020 67 #2,565 – –
2019 57 #2,911 – –
2018 85 #2,199 – –
2017 81 #2,294 – –
2016 86 #2,237 – –
2015 99 #2,002 – –
2014 131 #1,640 – –
2013 149 #1,491 – –
2012 171 #1,369 – –
2011 185 #1,283 – –
2010 214 #1,144 – –
2009 286 #937 – –
2008 335 #842 – –
2007 399 #731 – –
2006 407 #698 5 #13,069
2005 318 #814 – –
2004 335 #772 – –
2003 368 #711 – –
2002 397 #640 – –
2001 398 #633 5 #11,501
2000 416 #610 – –
1995 205 #922 – –
1990 267 #766 – –
1985 180 #890 – –
1980 158 #950 – –
1975 140 #925 – –
1970 113 #1,075 – –
1965 40 #1,817 – –
1960 118 #989 – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Keely

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

  1. 1 Keely Smith Keely Smith American jazz and popular music singer (1928–2017) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Keely?

The median living Keely is about 28 years old. Half of all living Keelys are between 19 and 39 years old.

How many people named Keely are alive today?

An estimated 12 thousand people named Keely are alive in the United States, based on 12,719 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Keely mean?

A female given name transferred from the surname.

How popular is the name Keely in 2025?

Keely ranked #2,737 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 63 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Keely?

12,719 babies have been named Keely in the United States since 1957, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Keely most popular?

Keely peaked in 1997, when 555 newborns received the name.

Is Keely a boy or girl name?

Keely is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Keely rising or falling?

Keely is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Keely become more popular?

Keely looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 66 girls named Keely in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Keely?

Well-known people named Keely include Keely Smith (singer).

Names like Keely

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

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