Kelis
Feminine
Kelis is overwhelmingly a girls’ name — 2,871 girls against 6 boys since 1880.
Kelis has an origin that can be stated exactly, which almost no name can: an American singer's parents built it from the first half of one of their names and the second half of the other. The daughter carried it into wide use in the two-thousands, and other families followed.
How old is the name Kelis?
Kelis first appears in US birth records in 2000 — 25 years ago. The typical Kelis alive today was born around 2009, making them about 16 years old. About 2,800 people named Kelis are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kelis most popular?
Kelis peaked in 2007, reaching #968 nationally. Today it ranks #4987, 4,019 places below that high. See the whole 2007 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Kelis
Blending two parents' names is one of the oldest ways of making a new one, and American families have done it steadily for a century: a syllable from the mother, a syllable from the father, and a name that belongs to that household alone. Kelis is a clean example, and the fact that its bearer became well known meant the name escaped the family entirely and went into general use. What it carries is a method rather than a language, and a very precise date, and both are more than most modern names can show.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The name was assembled from two parents' names and has no meaning in any language. That is not a gap in the record; it is the whole of the record, and it is unusually well documented for a name of any age.
Pronouncing Kelis
kuh-LEESS
Two syllables with the stress at the end, the second held long. Some families say KEL-iss with the weight in front, and both are heard.
Nicknames for Kelis
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
- 2000
- Most girls named
- 2007277 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #968reached in 2007
- Change vs 2024
- −18.8%26 in 2025, from 32
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.
Kelis in other languages
Strongest US states over the last decade: Florida, New York, Georgia.
Keliss among us
people named Kelis are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 61,818 born in 2025 was named Kelis
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Norman test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Kelis's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Norman climbed just as high around 1929, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Norman's path sketches the road Kelis is walking now.
Kelis sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Kelis is headed
Kelis is easing off slowly — about 31% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Kelis beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Kelis in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Its origin can be stated in one sentence, which very few names allow.
- Kel works as a short form and needs no explaining.
- It is short, distinctive and easy to say once the stress is settled.
- Two stress patterns circulate and the spelling settles neither.
- It is closely associated with one performer, so the name arrives with a reference attached.
- It has no meaning in any language, which some children find disappointing.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Kelis to the vote.
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What they receive
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Kelis
Feminine · #4987 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Keliss are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,800 people named Kelis are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kelis in 2025?
- Kelis ranks #4987 among US girl names in 2025, with 26 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Kelis?
- About 1 in every 61,818 US girls born in 2025 was named Kelis — 26 in all.
- Will my child share the name Kelis with classmates?
- Kelis will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Kelis
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Perri#4987 · Giannina#4987 · Karisma#4987 · Zuleyka#4987 · Mccall#4987 · Makinley#4987 · Jayani#4987 · Mela#4987
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kelis? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Kelis and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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