Khalif
Masculine · “successor”
Khalif is the Arabic word for a successor, and it is the title of the head of the Muslim community — caliph in English.
How old is the name Khalif?
Khalif first appears in US birth records in 1970 — 55 years ago. The typical Khalif alive today was born around 2000, making them about 25 years old. About 1,700 people named Khalif are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Khalif most popular?
Khalif peaked in 1992, reaching #1598 nationally. Today it ranks #4249, 2,651 places below that high. See the whole 1992 chart.
Where it comes from
From khalifa to Khalif
The story of Khalif
Khalifa is a word about following: it names a successor, and after the Prophet's death it became the title of the leader of the community — the caliph. The office lasted in one form or another until 1924. The word also appears in the Qur'an of humanity as a whole, placed on the earth as stewards. Khalif as a personal name is used across the Muslim world and reaches American records from several directions.
Meaning
successor, deputy
From an Arabic root meaning to succeed or come after; khalifa names one who follows another. The Qur'an uses it of Adam as God's deputy on earth, and it became the title of the successors to the Prophet's political authority.
How the name formed
- khalifa
- Khalif
Related forms: Khalifa · Khalif · Halif
Pronouncing Khalif
kuh-LEEF
Two syllables with the stress on the second. The kh is a throat sound English lacks.
Nicknames for Khalif
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
- 1970
- Most boys named
- 199255 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1598reached in 1992
- Change vs 2024
- −20.0%24 in 2025, from 30
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.
Khalif in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Khalifa in Arabic — related form
- Khalif in Somali — same name
- Halif in Turkish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: Florida, Georgia, Pennsylvania.
Khalifs among us
people named Khalif are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 71,170 born in 2025 was named Khalif
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Khalif
- #4249
- Khalif on the 2025 chart
- #899
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Khalif went to 24 boys in 2025, but Caliph is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 29, which makes it the 899th most-given boys’ name of the year — 3,350 places above the chart.
- Khalif24
- Caliph5
About 1 boy in 58,899 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 71,170 for Khalif 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 Fransico test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Khalif's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Fransico climbed just as high around 1951, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Fransico's path sketches the road Khalif is walking now.
Khalif 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
Khalif beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Khalif in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning with a genuinely central historical office behind it.
- Six letters and two syllables, quick to write.
- Recognized across the whole Muslim world.
- It names a very high religious and political office, which will draw comment.
- The kh is a throat sound English speakers will say as a plain k.
- Khalif, Khalifa and Khalil are all close and get confused.
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What they receive
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Khalif
Masculine · #4249 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Khalifs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,700 people named Khalif are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Khalif?
- Khalif is the most-used spelling in US records — 24 of the 29 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Caliph.
- How popular is the name Khalif in 2025?
- Khalif ranks #4249 among US boy names in 2025, with 24 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Khalif?
- About 1 in every 71,170 US boys born in 2025 was named Khalif — 24 in all.
- Will my child share the name Khalif with classmates?
- Khalif will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Khalif
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Guadalupe#4249 · Denny#4249 · Hughes#4249 · Erling#4249 · Rodrick#4249 · Elric#4249 · Ron#4249 · Wright#4249
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Khalif? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Khalif and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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