Kaleen
Feminine
Kaleen is an American build with no documented source. Its first syllable is a vegetable, and that vegetable is the same plant as several others that look nothing like it.
How old is the name Kaleen?
Kaleen first appears in US birth records in 1949 — 76 years ago. The typical Kaleen alive today was born around 1988, making them about 37 years old. About 700 people named Kaleen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kaleen most popular?
Kaleen peaked in 1994, reaching #3038 nationally. See the whole 1994 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Kaleen
Kale, cabbage, broccoli, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, kohlrabi and collard greens are all the same species, Brassica oleracea, bred over two thousand years to exaggerate different parts of one wild plant. Kale is close to the original leafy form. Cabbage is the terminal bud swollen into a ball. Broccoli and cauliflower are the flower head arrested at different stages. Brussels sprouts are the side buds. Kohlrabi is the stem. They interbreed freely, because they are one species, and a gardener who lets them flower together will get seed that produces something in between. It is the most dramatic piece of vegetable breeding anybody has ever done and almost nobody notices it.
Meaningnot established
Not established
Kathleen, Kayleen and Colleen have all been offered and none is documented. Names of this build frequently had no single parent even in the household that chose them.
Pronouncing Kaleen
kuh-LEEN
Two syllables with the weight on the second. KAY-leen, with the stress in front, is also heard.
Nicknames for Kaleen
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1949
- Most girls named
- 199438 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #3038reached in 1994
- Change vs 2018
- 0.0%5 in 2024, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Kaleens among us
people named Kaleen are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Kaleen sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- The stress is usually unmistakable, so most people say it correctly on a first reading.
- Kali comes off the front as a short form and stands alone.
- It is soft throughout with no difficult consonant in it.
- Kayleen, Kaylene and Kathleen are all in the record and will be confused with it.
- Two stress patterns are in circulation and the spelling settles neither.
- No origin is documented, so the meaning question has nothing to answer with.
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Kaleen
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Kaleens are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 700 people named Kaleen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kaleen in 2025?
- Kaleen is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Kaleen with classmates?
- Kaleen will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More K names
The most-given names starting with K, all years combined.
Karen#1279 · Kimberly#302 · Kathleen#1150 · Katherine#186 · Kelly#851 · Kathryn#729 · Kayla#364 · Kathy#3249
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kaleen? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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