Kalif
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- ka-LEEF
- Origin
- Arabic
Kalif is a boys' name of Arabic origin, meaning “successor, deputy”. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Kalif mean?
Arabic: spelling of Khalif; from Arabic khalifa
“successor, deputy”
From the same root as caliph, the title of the successors of the Prophet Muhammad as leaders of the Muslim community.
Meaning borrowed from Khalif.
Is Kalif a girl's or a boy's name?
Kalif is a boys' name.
How popular is Kalif in the US?
No boys in the US were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 1994, with 29 boys. It first appears in the records in 1974.
Half of all the boys named Kalif in the US since 1880 were born between 1989 and 2003, the years shaded on the chart below.
Kalif in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5 | #12,341 |
| 2023 | 0 | – |
| 2022 | 0 | – |
| 2021 | 7 | #9,709 |
| 2020 | 0 | – |
| 2019 | 0 | – |
| 2018 | 9 | #8,150 |
| 2017 | 0 | – |
| 2016 | 0 | – |
| 2015 | 6 | #10,638 |
| 2014 | 0 | – |
| 2013 | 0 | – |
| 2012 | 8 | #8,858 |
| 2011 | 6 | #10,801 |
| 2010 | 5 | #12,224 |
| 2009 | 12 | #6,798 |
| 2008 | 8 | #9,013 |
| 2007 | 0 | – |
| 2006 | 6 | #10,655 |
| 2005 | 8 | #8,292 |
| 2004 | 8 | #8,137 |
| 2003 | 14 | #5,265 |
| 2002 | 9 | #7,048 |
| 2001 | 8 | #7,529 |
| 2000 | 15 | #4,779 |
| 1999 | 9 | #6,524 |
| 1998 | 19 | #3,704 |
| 1997 | 23 | #3,155 |
| 1996 | 20 | #3,400 |
| 1995 | 15 | #4,046 |
| 1994 | 29 | #2,551 |
| 1993 | 17 | #3,655 |
| 1992 | 13 | #4,319 |
| 1991 | 13 | #4,223 |
| 1990 | 13 | #4,161 |
| 1989 | 10 | #4,805 |
| 1988 | 9 | #4,781 |
| 1987 | 11 | #3,954 |
| 1986 | 10 | #4,126 |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 0 | – |
| 1983 | 8 | #4,497 |
| 1982 | 7 | #5,001 |
| 1981 | 8 | #4,507 |
| 1980 | 5 | #6,248 |
| 1979 | 10 | #3,808 |
| 1978 | 0 | – |
| 1977 | 9 | #3,834 |
| 1976 | 7 | #4,416 |
| 1975 | 0 | – |
| 1974 | 8 | #3,835 |
Names like Kalif
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Ahmad, Khalid, Muhammad, Hamza, Raheem, Amir, Abdullah, Khalil, Samir, Zahir, Mustafa, Saif
Names related to Kalif
More Arabic names
Layla, Mohammed, Lyla, Mohammad, Zara, Aaliyah, Amira, Fatima, Ali, Yahya, Zayn, Aisha, Omar, Zahra, Kairo, Safa
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Kalif: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/kalif, updated 20 October 2026.