Caleb
Caleb was the 58th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 5,217 babies. Its best year was 2009, when it ranked 31st; the most babies were born in 2002 (11,665). Over the last ten years it has moved down 21 places. More babies were named Caleb in the 2000s than in any other decade.
Meaning dog (debated) · Hebrew
Say it KAY-luhb /ˈkeɪləb/
- Rank in 2025
- #58 boys, down 2 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 5,217boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 200211,665 babies
- Total since 1880
- 325,003babies recorded
What does the name Caleb mean?
Caleb is a biblical name: Caleb son of Jephunneh is one of the scouts Moses sends into Canaan, and one of the few of his generation allowed to enter it. The Hebrew form is Kalev. DMNES connects it with the Hebrew word for 'dog', and Wiktionary also gives that link, though it marks it as 'possibly', with the idea of a dog's devotion to its master. The link is the usual view but not a certainty. DMNES finds it in English records from the 1570s, and it spread mainly through Puritan naming.
כָּלֵב (Biblical Hebrew, “Kalev; compare כֶּלֶב keleḇ, 'dog'”)
How sure is this? Probable. The 'dog' link is the usual explanation; Wiktionary marks it as possible rather than certain.
Related names: Kaleb, Kalev, Cale.
See also: Hebrew names.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Caleb', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
- Hebrew Bible, Numbers 13:6, JPS translation with notes (via Sefaria), Sefaria; verse reference and facts only, not quoted
- Wiktionary, entry 'Caleb', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Caleb
The usual nicknames for Caleb are Cal. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Caleb in the last five years, 7 were named Cal, against fewer than 1 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cal · also for Calvin, Callum, Callan | Modern | #543 | 1,942 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Calebs go by each one.
Caleb popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 653 since 1980.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #58 | 5,217 |
| 2020 | #56 | 5,616 |
| 2010 | #32 | 10,485 |
| 2000 | #38 | 9,866 |
| 1990 | #88 | 4,154 |
| 1980 | #235 | 980 |
| 1970 | #832 | 94 |
| 1960 | #1,100 | 50 |
| 1950 | #1,205 | 36 |
| 1940 | #1,229 | 30 |
| 1930 | #1,608 | 21 |
| 1920 | #960 | 52 |
| 1910 | #787 | 15 |
| 1900 | #794 | 11 |
| 1890 | #754 | 8 |
| 1880 | #327 | 27 |
How popular is Caleb, counting every spelling?
Caleb is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #47 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #58 for Caleb on its own. Together these spellings went to 6,365 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Caleb | 5,217 | #58 | 28,287 |
| Kaleb | 1,143 | #295 | 6,407 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Caleb?
5,217 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Caleb (1.45 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Caleb born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is about 1 in 37. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 2 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Caleb.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Caleb?
About 316,100 people born in the US named Caleb are alive today, with a median age of 20; half are between 12 and 28. That makes Caleb mostly worn by children and young adults.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Caleb by state
How common Caleb was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Delaware (2.1×), Rhode Island (2.0×), Hawaii (1.9×), Maryland (1.9×), Connecticut (1.8×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in West Virginia, Oklahoma, Louisiana.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Caleb: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Caleb, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Caleb · Sibling names for Caleb
Questions about the name Caleb
What does Caleb mean?
Caleb means “dog (debated)” (Hebrew origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Caleb?
Caleb was the 58th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 5,217 babies. Its best year was 2009, when it ranked 31st; the most babies were born in 2002 (11,665). Over the last ten years it has moved down 21 places. More babies were named Caleb in the 2000s than in any other decade.
Is Caleb a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Caleb in the US.
Where is Caleb most popular?
In 2021–2025, Caleb was most common in Delaware (6.92 per 1,000 boys), followed by Rhode Island and Hawaii.