Kiefer
Masculine · “German Kiefer”
The chain behind this name is unusually traceable: a screenwriter called Warren Kiefer, an actor who named his son after him, and then a decade of American parents naming their sons after the actor.
How old is the name Kiefer?
Kiefer first appears in US birth records in 1988 — 37 years ago. The typical Kiefer alive today was born around 1997, making them about 28 years old. About 1,900 people named Kiefer are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kiefer most popular?
Kiefer peaked in 1991, reaching #710 nationally. Today it ranks #10695, 9,985 places below that high. See the whole 1991 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Kiefer
Warren Kiefer wrote and directed films in Italy in the 1960s, including one that Donald Sutherland appeared in early in his career; Sutherland named his son after him in 1966. The son became a film actor, and by the late 1980s the name was visible enough to enter American birth records in numbers, peaking in 1991. That is three steps, each documented, from a working screenwriter to a set of children who have no connection to any of it. Naming chains of this kind are more common than they look: the actor Gary Cooper took his name from a town, which took it from a steel executive, and a large share of American Garys descend from that sequence without knowing any part of it.
Meaningscholars disagree
German Kiefer, a pine or a cooper
Kiefer is a German surname, from the pine tree or from an occupational word for a cooper. The German noun meaning a jaw is a separate word with the same spelling. The American peak of the given name is 1991.
Pronouncing Kiefer
KEE-fur
Two syllables, stress on the first. The ie is a long e in both German and English.
Nicknames for Kiefer
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
- 1988
- Most boys named
- 1991204 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #710reached in 1991
- Change vs 2024
- +20.0%6 in 2025, 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.
Kiefer in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Kiefer in German — same name
- Keifer in English — spelling variant
Kiefers among us
people named Kiefer are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 284,679 born in 2025 was named Kiefer
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 Torrance test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Kiefer's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Torrance climbed just as high around 1973, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Torrance's path sketches the road Kiefer is walking now.
Kiefer 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
Kiefer beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Kiefer in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- It is a genuine German surname with a documented meaning.
- Two syllables and six letters.
- Kief works as a short form.
- One actor dominates the association entirely.
- Keifer is a competing spelling.
- The 1991 peak dates it closely.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Kiefer to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Kiefer? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Kiefer
Masculine · #10695 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Kiefers are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,900 people named Kiefer are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kiefer in 2025?
- Kiefer ranks #10695 among US boy names in 2025, with 6 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Kiefer?
- About 1 in every 284,679 US boys born in 2025 was named Kiefer — 6 in all.
- Will my child share the name Kiefer with classmates?
- Kiefer will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Kiefer
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Traven#10695 · Shaheed#10695 · Thai#10695 · Rayon#10695 · Esgar#10695 · Kashawn#10695 · Kalob#10695 · Thien#10695
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kiefer? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Kiefer and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
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
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle