Kaleb

What Kaleb means

Means “dog”

From Hebrew כלב (“dog”), possibly referring to a dog’s unconditional devotion to its master.

Source: Wiktionary, “Kaleb” (revision 93542356), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Kaleb?

US: Falling: down from #164 in 2015. England & Wales: Steady: #355 in 2015, #352 now.

Biggest US share so far: 2009, when 3,787 boys got the name (#108 that year). First in the US records in 1970.

How common

• About 1 in 1,494 baby boys in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 2,285 baby boys in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 1,034 baby boys in Scotland in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in MS (1.38 per 1,000 boys), AR (1.35 per 1,000 boys), NV (1.33 per 1,000 boys) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed boys born in each state.

US vs UK

Kaleb is #295 in the US and #352 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (boys). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 99.9+% of US babies named Kaleb were boys.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Caleb5,217 US · 624 E&W
• Kayleb31 US
• Cayleb9 US
• Kalib7 US
• Kalob6 US
• Kaileb6 US
• Calob5 US
• Calebe5 US

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like Kaleb

Boys

• Issac#915Variant of Isaac, meaning “he laughs, he will laugh”^*
• Gabriel#37Finnish, meaning “God is my strong man, God is my hero”^*
• Emanuel#574Spanish, meaning “God is with us”^*
• Ethan#24“firmness, strong, or long-lived”^*
• Isaiah#57Editor’s note Down from #49 in 2015 to #57 in 2025 in the US. About 1 in 320 US boys in the 2025 records
• Isaac#47“he laughs, he will laugh”^*

For a sister

• Abigail#41“my Father's joy”^*
• Annika#995Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 2003, with 1,089 babies; 254 in 2025
• Makayla#566Form of Michael, meaning “who is like God?”^*
• Daniela#302Form of Daniel, meaning “God is my judge”^*
• Jordyn#371Editor’s note Cooling off in the US: #136 in 2015, #371 in 2025
• Gabriella#105Editor’s note Down from #54 in 2015 to #105 in 2025 in the US

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under Hebrew, whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Kaleb’s. Rank is US 2025.