Kaleb
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Meaning
modern spelling of Caleb; probably connected to Hebrew "dog," alternatively "whole heart"
The story
A frightened crowd has heard a grim report when Caleb steps forward in the Book of Numbers. The text depicts him quieting the people and arguing that they can still prevail. In the next part of the narrative, he and Joshua tear their garments in grief and protest. This is a scriptural scene, not a verdict on the character of anyone named Kaleb. It gives motion to a name whose linguistic explanation remains debated. Kaleb is a modern English variant of Caleb. The leading proposal connects Caleb to a Hebrew word for "dog," while an alternate theory combines elements for "whole" and "heart." That second analysis can suggest the familiar rendering "wholehearted," but it is not the settled literal meaning. The change from C to K does not prove rebellion or any particular cultural motive. It is simply a variant spelling carrying an old, contested name into a distinct modern form.
How popular is Kaleb around the world?
In the United States, 8,021 babies were named Kaleb between 2020 and 2025. In Puerto Rico, 25 babies were named Kaleb in 2025, and 981 have carried the name since 1998.
Kaleb is on the official records of the United States, Puerto Rico, Mexico City, South Australia, Canada, Scotland, England and Wales, Argentina, New Zealand, Ireland, Brazil, Chile, Austria, France, Poland and Spain.
Kaleb crosses languages: it is in the latest top 300 of an English-speaking birth record and of a Spanish-speaking one. The full list: English and Spanish
United States
1 in 2,700
In the United States, 8,021 babies were named Kaleb between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Kaleb peaked in the 2000s and the 2010s in nearly equal measure. Kaleb went to 2,535 US babies in 2015 and 1,143 in 2025, 45% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Puerto Rico
1 in 720
In Puerto Rico, 25 babies were named Kaleb in 2025, and 981 have carried the name since 1998.
share of that year’s births on record
First given name only, from Social Security records of births in Puerto Rico; any name-sex-year under 5 births is withheld at source. Shares divide by the Puerto Rico Demographic Registry’s count of births on the island; the 2025 count is provisional. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, territory name file (Puerto Rico)
Mexico City City
1 in 1,400
In Mexico City, there were 86 registrations of Kaleb in 2022.
share of that year’s registrations in the city
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023 (6 registrations through 3 Mar) is excluded as partial. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
South Australia
1 in 2,3002017
In South Australia, 8 boys were registered as Kaleb in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Canada
1 in 2,700
In Canada, 137 boys named Kaleb were born in 2024, the 240th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Scotland
1 in 3,500
In Scotland, 13 boys named Kaleb were registered in 2024, the 290th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
England and Wales
1 in 4,900
In England and Wales, 119 boys named Kaleb were born in 2025, the 352nd most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Argentina
1 in 5,100
In Argentina, 131 newborns were given the name Kaleb in 2024.
share of that year’s name registrations
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
New Zealand
1 in 5,800
In New Zealand, 10 boys named Kaleb were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Ireland
1 in 6,000
In Ireland, 9 boys named Kaleb were born in 2025, the 402nd most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Brazil
1 in 11,000
At the 2022 census, 18,957 people in Brazil were named Kaleb, ranked 1,102nd, with a median age of 5.
Among people named Kaleb living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 2010s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
The census also counted 7,008 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart. People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Chile
1 in 16,000
In Chile, 11 boys were registered as Kaleb in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
share of that year’s name registrations
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Austria
1 in 19,000
In Austria, 4 boys named Kaleb were born in 2025, the 827th most common name among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
The count never rose above 6 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
France
1 in 32,000
In France, about 20 boys named Kaleb were born in 2025, ranked 1,681st among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
Poland
1 in 62,000
In Poland, 4 boys named Kaleb were born in 2025, the 490th most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Spain
1 in 520,000
In Spain, 87 residents are named Kaleb, ranked 9,225th among men, with a mean age of 9.4 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Kaleb
Most people given the name Kaleb in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Kaleb · Names that go with Kaleb · Climbers and fallers
The Kaleb deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Kaleb truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Kaleb fits with your family’s names and surname.
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