Kirin
Kirin was the 4093rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 26 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 3138th with 39 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 151 places. More babies were named Kirin in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Kyren) variant of Kieran (probable) · Irish, American English
- Rank in 2025
- #4,093 boys, up 261 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 26boys
- Girls and boys
- 14% girls, 86% boys2021–2025
- Peak year
- 202439 babies
- Total since 1880
- 983babies recorded
What does the name Kirin mean?
Kirin is a spelling of Kyren, pronounced the same way, so it shares Kyren's meaning and origin.
Kyren is a modern spelling, recorded in the US from 1990, that most likely represents Kieran, the anglicized form of the Irish name Ciarán, from ciar 'dark, black' with a diminutive ending, so 'little dark one'. Saint Ciarán of Clonmacnoise was a 6th-century founder of monasteries. Wiktionary lists Kyren without an etymology, and some bearers may have it as a blend of Ky- and -ren names.
ciar (Irish, “dark, black”)
How sure is this? Probable. The link to Kieran is likely but not documented for this spelling.
Related names: Kieran, Kyran, Ciarán, Keiran.
See also: Irish names, names that mean a color.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kyren', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kieran', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (our computation), SSA (public domain)
Kirin popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | — | #4,093 | — | 26 |
| 2020 | #16,393 | #4,354 | 5 | 23 |
| 2010 | #18,534 | #4,772 | 5 | 20 |
| 2000 | #8,307 | #9,778 | 12 | 6 |
| 1990 | #8,865 | — | 9 | — |
| 1980 | #11,217 | — | 5 | — |
| 1970 | — | — | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — |
How popular is Kirin, counting every spelling?
Kirin is a spelling of Kyren, a name family that ranked #355 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #4,093 for Kirin on its own. Together these spellings went to 945 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kyren | 504 | #584 | 1,393 |
| Kiran | 155 | #1,272 | 632 |
| Kyrin | 85 | #1,857 | 469 |
| Kyron | 83 | #1,896 | 447 |
| Kyran | 68 | #2,133 | 443 |
| Kirin | 26 | #4,093 | 141 |
| Kyryn | 12 | #7,030 | 36 |
| Kiren | 7 | #10,237 | 31 |
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 Kirin?
26 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kirin (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Kirin 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 323 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kirin.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kirin?
About 600 people born in the US named Kirin are alive today, with a median age of 11; half are between 6 and 17. That makes Kirin 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.
Kirin by state
How common Kirin was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 50 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 Kirin: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kirin, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Kirin
What does Kirin mean?
Kirin is a spelling of Kyren, which means “variant of Kieran (probable)” (Irish, American English origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Kirin?
Kirin was the 4093rd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 26 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 3138th with 39 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 151 places. More babies were named Kirin in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Kirin a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, 14% girls, 86% boys given the name Kirin in the US.
Where is Kirin most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kirin was most common in California (0.02 per 1,000 boys).