Kali

What Kali means

Meaning not yet sourced. Wiktionary has no word-by-word meaning for Kali yet, and we don’t write our own.

Editor’s note Down from #267 in 2015 to #323 in 2025 in the US Worked out from the official US and England & Wales counts, not a meaning.

How popular is Kali?

US: Falling: down from #267 in 2015. England & Wales: Rising: up from #2195 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 2019, when 1,312 girls got the name (#241 that year). First in the US records in 1957.

How common

• About 1 in 1,695 baby girls in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 9,742 baby girls in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 1,988 baby girls 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 (2.7 per 1,000 girls), DE (2.22 per 1,000 girls), SC (1.59 per 1,000 girls) in 2025.

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

US vs UK

Kali is #323 in the US and #1229 in England & Wales (2025).

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

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 97.5% of US babies named Kali were girls.

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

• Kayla838 US · 110 E&W
• Cali518 US · 50 E&W
• Kyla512 US · 47 E&W
• Kaeli358 US
• Kaila88 US · 11 E&W
• Caeli90 US
• Gala71 US · 8 E&W
• Keyli72 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 Kali

Girls

• Ila#718Editor’s note Up from #1,183 in 2015 to #718 in 2025 in the US
• Arya#158“noble, respectable”^*
• Avani#805“earth”^*
• Lila#186“lilac”^*
• Maya#62Editor’s note Steady in the US: #68 in 2015 and #62 in 2025. About 1 in 430 US girls in the 2025 records
• Anya#375Editor’s note Up from #550 in 2015 to #375 in 2025 in the US

For a brother

• Bodhi#265Editor’s note First shows up in US records in 1976, with 5 babies
• Arjun#490Editor’s note First shows up in US records in 1967, with 7 babies
• Kieran#389Editor’s note Up from #512 in 2015 to #389 in 2025 in the US
• Aarav#710“sound; loud noise”^*
• Ishaan#893Editor’s note Up from #918 in 2015 to #893 in 2025 in the US
• Rohan#810“to ascend”^*

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