Keilani
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Meaning
heavenly glory, from kai (sea) and lani (sky)
The story
Keilani is Hawaiian, usually read as heavenly glory or glorious sky, built from lani, the heavens, the element that closes so many beloved Hawaiian names, with Kei- carrying the sense of glory and adornment. It belongs to the newer generation of Hawaiian names that mainland families have adopted, alongside Leilani and Kailani, all sharing that skyward ending. The US curve registers it from the 1970s, strengthens through the 2000s and 2010s, and reaches its peak in the 2020s, still climbing, the trajectory of a name in active discovery. The sound explains the success: three open syllables, no hard edges, a built-in nickname in Kei. The heavens, conjugated the island way. Its current rise makes it familiar without turning it into a long-established mainland classic.
How popular is Keilani around the world?
In the United States, 2,456 babies were named Keilani between 2020 and 2025. In Mexico City, there were 33 registrations of Keilani in 2022.
Keilani is on the official records of the United States, Mexico City, Puerto Rico, England and Wales and Brazil.
United States
1 in 8,900
In the United States, 2,456 babies were named Keilani between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Keilani peaked in the 2020s.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Mexico City City
1 in 3,600
In Mexico City, there were 33 registrations of Keilani 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 (1 registration through 3 Mar) is excluded as partial. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Puerto Rico
1 in 3,600
In Puerto Rico, 5 babies were named Keilani in 2025, and 5 have carried the name since 1998.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
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)
England and Wales
1 in 120,000
In England and Wales, 5 girls named Keilani were born in 2025, ranked 4,201st among girls that year.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
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
last on record 2023
Keilani is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 38 people in Brazil were named Keilani, ranked 80,303rd, with a median age of 23.
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
Canada
last on record 2023
Keilani is not on the 2024 record for Canada, where names under 5 in a year are excluded at source.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.
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)
South Australia
last on record 2014
Keilani is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Not on the record in Spain, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. 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 the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). 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 Keilani
Most people given the name Keilani in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Keilani deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Keilani 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 Keilani fits with your family’s names and surname.
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