Khali
Feminine
Khali is given to both — 1,387 girls and 700 boys since 1880. See Khali as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Khali is a short modern American name with a real Arabic neighbor: khali, which means empty or free — free in the specific sense of unencumbered.
How old is the name Khali?
Khali first appears in US birth records in 1980 — 45 years ago. The typical Khali is a kid of about 8 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,400 people named Khali are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Khali most popular?
Khali peaked in 2018, reaching #1774 nationally. Today it ranks #3780, 2,006 places below that high. See the whole 2018 chart.
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Khali
Ours, offered as ours. The Arabic word behind this sound names the Empty Quarter — the sand sea covering a quarter of the Arabian peninsula, one of the emptiest places on the planet — and, of a person, someone with no encumbrances. Whether an American family reached the spelling by that road is unrecorded; the kh is almost certainly borrowed for its look rather than its sound. Both facts are worth having.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No source is established for the given name. Arabic khali means empty or vacant and, of a person, free from obligation; the Rub al-Khali, the Empty Quarter, carries it. The Kha- opening of modern American naming is the other likely source.
Pronouncing Khali
KAH-lee
Two syllables, first stressed. The kh is said as a plain k in English.
Nicknames for Khali
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
- 1980
- Most girls named
- 2018115 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1774reached in 2018
- Change vs 2024
- −4.9%39 in 2025, from 41
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.
Khali in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Khali in Arabic — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Georgia.
Khalis among us
people named Khali are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 41,212 born in 2025 was named Khali
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Khali
- #3780
- Khali on the 2025 chart
- #205
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Khali went to 39 girls in 2025, but Kali, Cali and Kalli and the rest below are the same name said out loud. Together the 7 spellings went to 1,609, which makes it the 205th most-given girls’ name of the year — 3,575 places above the chart.
and 1 rarer spelling.
About 1 girl in 999 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 41,212 for Khali itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Josey test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Khali's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Josey climbed just as high around 1998, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Josey's path sketches the road Khali is walking now.
Khali 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 Khali is headed
Khali 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.
Khali beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Khali in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Five letters and two syllables, quick to write.
- Open vowels make it easy to say in most languages.
- Rare in the records, so it stays distinct on a class list.
- The kh will be spelled out for her constantly, since American ears hear a plain k.
- Khali, Kali and Khalee are all in use and none is dominant.
- The Hindu goddess Kali is a near-homophone and a very different association.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Khali
Feminine · #3780 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Khalis are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,400 people named Khali are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Khali?
- Khali is one of 6 recorded spellings. Kali is the more common one — 948 births in 2025 against 39 for Khali.
- How popular is the name Khali in 2025?
- Khali ranks #3780 among US girl names in 2025, with 39 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Khali?
- About 1 in every 41,212 US girls born in 2025 was named Khali — 39 in all.
- Will my child share the name Khali with classmates?
- Khali will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Khali
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Kimberlyn#3780 · Jonah#3780 · Aine#3780 · Jakayla#3780 · Shriya#3780 · Analeigh#3780 · Daliyah#3780 · Jamia#3780
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Khali? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Khali and another name?
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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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