Calum
Calum was the 799th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 313 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,115 places. More babies were named Calum in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Callum) dove (Gaelic form of Columba) · Scottish Gaelic, Latin
- Rank in 2025
- #799 boys, up 130 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 313boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2025313 babies
- Total since 1880
- 3,506babies recorded
What does the name Calum mean?
Calum is a spelling of Callum, pronounced the same way, so it shares Callum's meaning and origin.
Callum is a spelling of the Scottish Gaelic Calum, from Late Latin Columba, 'dove', the name of the 6th-century Irish missionary Saint Columba, a patron saint of Scotland; Wiktionary explains this. It is also a short form of the surname McCallum, 'son of Calum'. DMNES gives Latin columba as 'pigeon, dove'. Malcolm comes from a related Gaelic name that DMNES explains as 'tonsured one (devotee) of Columba'.
Calum (Scottish Gaelic, “Columba”)columba (Latin, “dove, pigeon”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Calum, Colm, Malcolm, Columba, Kallum.
See also: Latin names, names that mean an animal.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Callum', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wiktionary, entry 'Calum', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Columba', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Malcolm', Durham University / The DMNES Editors
Calum popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #799 | 313 |
| 2020 | #929 | 240 |
| 2010 | #2,289 | 56 |
| 2000 | #2,629 | 35 |
| 1990 | #3,485 | 17 |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Calum, counting every spelling?
Calum is a spelling of Callum, a name family that ranked #112 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #799 for Calum on its own. Together these spellings went to 3,445 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Callum | 2,995 | #118 | 9,587 |
| Calum | 313 | #799 | 1,421 |
| Kallum | 114 | #1,522 | 416 |
| Kalum | 23 | #4,468 | 95 |
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 Calum?
313 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Calum (0.09 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Calum born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 27 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Calum.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Calum?
About 3,500 people born in the US named Calum are alive today, with a median age of 7; half are between 4 and 15. That makes Calum a young name: most people with it are children.
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.
Calum by state
How common Calum was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Utah (3.8×), Iowa (2.4×), Wisconsin (2.4×), Minnesota (2.1×), Ohio (1.9×). In 17 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Calum: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Calum, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Calum
What does Calum mean?
Calum is a spelling of Callum, which means “dove (Gaelic form of Columba)” (Scottish Gaelic, Latin origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Calum?
Calum was the 799th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 313 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,115 places. More babies were named Calum in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Is Calum a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Calum in the US.
Where is Calum most popular?
In 2021–2025, Calum was most common in Utah (0.62 per 1,000 boys), followed by Iowa and Wisconsin.