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Keli

girl name
Origin
Modern American
Syllables
2
Peak era
1970s/1980s
Today
▬ Steady

Torn between Keli and another name? Compare them side by side →

Meaning

a modern respelling of Kelly, from the Irish surname Ó Ceallaigh, often read as bright-headed

The story

Read the story of Kelly →

More names with stories →

How popular is Keli around the world?

In the United States, 32 babies were named Keli between 2020 and 2025. At the 2022 census, 20,028 people in Brazil were named Keli, ranked 1,067th, with a median age of 35.

Keli is on the official records of the United States, Brazil and Spain.

United States

1 in 680,000

In the United States, 32 babies were named Keli between 2020 and 2025.

1890speak 1970s2020s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Keli peaked in the 1970s and the 1980s in nearly equal measure.

Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration

See the full list for the United States →

Brazil

1 in 10,000

At the 2022 census, 20,028 people in Brazil were named Keli, ranked 1,067th, with a median age of 35.
Among people named Keli living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.

1960speak 1980s2010s

people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth

The census also counted 114 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

See the full list for Brazil →

Spain

1 in 1.7M

In Spain, 27 residents are named Keli, ranked 24,164th among women, with a mean age of 37.5 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

See the full list for Spain →

England and Wales

last on record 2003

Keli is not on the 2025 record for England and Wales, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 4 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

See the full list for England and Wales →

Mexico City City

last on record 2018

Keli is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.

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, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023

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Montevideo City

last on record 2010

Keli is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.

Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial

See the full list for Montevideo →

Scotland

last on record 1978

Keli is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.

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

See the full list for Scotland →

South Australia

last on record 2016

Keli 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

See the full list for South Australia →

Not on the record in Argentina, Puerto Rico, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand 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 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.

All records: the most popular baby names around the world →

When you meet Keli

People given the name Keli in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1960 to 1989. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.

Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.

Names that fit alongside Keli

Chantel Shanelle Aubry Latanya Latisha Sloane

Keep exploring

Short names

The Keli deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Keli 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 Keli fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

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