Keelan
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- KEE-lan
- Origin
- Irish
- UK rank, 2025
- #2,087 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #2,451 for boys
Big in Northern Ireland
Keelan is a boys' name of Irish origin, meaning “slender”. In 2025 it ranked 2,087th for boys in the UK (12 babies) and 2,451st for boys in the US (55 babies).
What does Keelan mean?
Irish: anglicised form of Irish Caolán
“slender”
Anglicised form of the Irish name Caolán, a diminutive of caol, slender.
Is Keelan a girl's or a boy's name?
Keelan is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 12 boys in the UK and 55 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Keelan in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #2,087among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 12about 1 in 25,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 53% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 12 boys in the UK were named Keelan, making it the 2,087th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,078th. Its busiest year was 2004, with 124 boys.
2025 had the fewest boys named Keelan since the records began in 1996.
Half of all the boys named Keelan in the UK since 1996 were born between 2001 and 2012. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier boys aren't counted.
In 2025, 16 boys in the UK were given Keelan or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #1,452, up from #2,087 for this spelling alone.
- Keelan 12
- Kellan 4
Among boys in 2025, it was 2,011th in England and Wales.
Keelan in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 12 | #2,087 |
| 2024 | 18 | #1,528 |
| 2023 | 14 | #1,812 |
| 2022 | 13 | #1,886 |
| 2021 | 28 | #1,110 |
| 2020 | 28 | #1,078 |
| 2019 | 31 | #1,016 |
| 2018 | 35 | #940 |
| 2017 | 42 | #844 |
| 2016 | 36 | #939 |
| 2015 | 53 | #700 |
| 2014 | 75 | #561 |
| 2013 | 66 | #597 |
| 2012 | 67 | #594 |
| 2011 | 78 | #510 |
| 2010 | 70 | #550 |
| 2009 | 73 | #526 |
| 2008 | 89 | #461 |
| 2007 | 79 | #479 |
| 2006 | 97 | #392 |
| 2005 | 83 | #403 |
| 2004 | 124 | #291 |
| 2003 | 121 | #287 |
| 2002 | 117 | #275 |
| 2001 | 94 | #326 |
| 2000 | 100 | #304 |
| 1999 | 105 | #301 |
| 1998 | 98 | #299 |
| 1997 | 101 | #306 |
| 1996 | 81 | #327 |
How popular is Keelan in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #2,451among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 55about 1 in 31,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 43% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 55 boys in the US were named Keelan, making it the 2,451st most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,766th. Its busiest year was 2014, with 135 boys. It first appears in the records in 1967.
2025 had fewer boys named Keelan than any year since 1994.
Half of all the boys named Keelan in the US since 1880 were born between 1998 and 2015, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 550 boys in the US were given Keelan or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #536, up from #2,451 for this spelling alone.
Girls were 19% of the babies named Keelan in the US in 1982, and 8% in 2023.
Keelan in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 55 | #2,451 |
| 2024 | 67 | #2,169 |
| 2023 | 58 | #2,361 |
| 2022 | 78 | #1,964 |
| 2021 | 88 | #1,789 |
| 2020 | 86 | #1,766 |
| 2019 | 123 | #1,420 |
| 2018 | 105 | #1,584 |
| 2017 | 96 | #1,644 |
| 2016 | 107 | #1,548 |
| 2015 | 135 | #1,307 |
| 2014 | 135 | #1,306 |
| 2013 | 117 | #1,420 |
| 2012 | 113 | #1,458 |
| 2011 | 112 | #1,459 |
| 2010 | 131 | #1,309 |
| 2009 | 98 | #1,617 |
| 2008 | 115 | #1,441 |
| 2007 | 134 | #1,299 |
| 2006 | 100 | #1,512 |
| 2005 | 79 | #1,688 |
| 2004 | 66 | #1,853 |
| 2003 | 99 | #1,363 |
| 2002 | 81 | #1,526 |
| 2001 | 96 | #1,341 |
| 2000 | 113 | #1,194 |
| 1999 | 86 | #1,371 |
| 1998 | 79 | #1,433 |
| 1997 | 87 | #1,307 |
| 1996 | 56 | #1,687 |
| 1995 | 74 | #1,364 |
| 1994 | 53 | #1,684 |
| 1993 | 44 | #1,870 |
| 1992 | 48 | #1,745 |
| 1991 | 53 | #1,583 |
| 1990 | 40 | #1,904 |
| 1989 | 35 | #2,022 |
| 1988 | 32 | #1,984 |
| 1987 | 30 | #2,016 |
| 1986 | 19 | #2,681 |
| 1985 | 20 | #2,503 |
| 1984 | 28 | #1,932 |
| 1983 | 20 | #2,407 |
| 1982 | 26 | #2,058 |
| 1981 | 16 | #2,777 |
| 1980 | 32 | #1,765 |
| 1979 | 22 | #2,235 |
| 1978 | 12 | #3,214 |
| 1977 | 14 | #2,909 |
| 1976 | 9 | #3,722 |
| 1975 | 14 | #2,749 |
| 1974 | 9 | #3,556 |
| 1973 | 6 | #4,503 |
| 1972 | 20 | #2,020 |
| 1971 | 0 | – |
| 1970 | 8 | #3,519 |
| 1969 | 0 | – |
| 1968 | 5 | #4,135 |
| 1967 | 7 | #3,229 |
Names like Keelan
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Keegan Declan Ronan Aiden Finn Kian Conan Brogan Keenan Kayden Conlan Regan
Other spellings of Keelan
Names related to Keelan
More Irish names
Oscar Rowan Rory Maeve Ryan Nolan Quinn Orla Cody Erin Connor Casey Kennedy Callan Lennon Cillian
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and 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, “Keelan: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/keelan, updated 20 October 2026.