Kieran
Kieran was the 389th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 817 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 123 places. More babies were named Kieran in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning little dark one (Irish Ciarán) · Irish
Say it KEER-un /ˈkɪrən/
- Rank in 2025
- #389 boys, up 125 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 817boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2025817 babies
- Total since 1880
- 19,218babies recorded
What does the name Kieran mean?
Kieran is the English form of Irish Ciarán, a diminutive of ciar, "dark, black", so "little dark one". Saint Ciarán of Clonmacnoise (6th century) was one of the major early Irish saints. Woulfe's 1923 index records Kieran and O'Kieran among the surname forms. Wiktionary also notes Kieran as an English spelling of Sanskrit kiraṇa, "ray of light".
ciar (Irish, “dark, black”)-án (Irish, “diminutive suffix”)
How sure is this? Probable. The Irish derivation is standard but given here without a dedicated Irish dictionary citation.
Related names: Ciarán, Keiran, Kiernan, Kiran.
See also: Irish names, names that mean a color.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kieran', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Patrick Woulfe, Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames (1923), index of Irish surnames and their anglicized forms, M. H. Gill & Son (Internet Archive scan)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kiran', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
Kieran popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 1,605 since 1949, 11 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #389 | 817 |
| 2020 | #514 | 558 |
| 2010 | #540 | 469 |
| 2000 | #528 | 416 |
| 1990 | #1,018 | 109 |
| 1980 | #1,457 | 43 |
| 1970 | #1,256 | 44 |
| 1960 | #1,308 | 37 |
| 1950 | #1,784 | 18 |
| 1940 | #3,010 | 7 |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Kieran, counting every spelling?
Kieran is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #390 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #389 for Kieran on its own. Together these spellings went to 838 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kieran | 817 | #389 | 3,388 |
| Kieren | 16 | #5,736 | 63 |
| Kieron | 5 | #13,063 | 42 |
| Kieryn | — | — | 35 |
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 Kieran?
817 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kieran (0.23 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Kieran 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 10 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kieran.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kieran?
About 17,000 people born in the US named Kieran are alive today, with a median age of 15; half are between 7 and 25. That makes Kieran 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.
Kieran by state
How common Kieran was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Pennsylvania (2.3×), Minnesota (2.2×), Connecticut (2.2×), Massachusetts (2.1×), Colorado (2.0×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Mexico, South Carolina, Oklahoma.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Kieran: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kieran, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Kieran · Sibling names for Kieran
Questions about the name Kieran
What does Kieran mean?
Kieran means “little dark one (Irish Ciarán)” (Irish origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Kieran?
Kieran was the 389th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 817 babies. That is its highest rank since records began in 1880. Over the last ten years it has moved up 123 places. More babies were named Kieran in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Kieran a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Kieran in the US.
Where is Kieran most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kieran was most common in District of Columbia (0.95 per 1,000 boys), followed by Pennsylvania and Minnesota.