Keiton
An anglicized variation of the Scottish Gaelic name Caitean, meaning "little arrogant one".
Name Census estimates that about 279 living Americans carry the first name Keiton. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Keiton today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Keiton births was 2007 (19 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Keiton. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Keiton with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
279
~ 1 in 1,228,510 Americans
Peak year
2007
19 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2021 SSA rank
#10,281
Tracked since 1990
Census
Keiton in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 264 people with the first name Keiton, which placed it at #32,084 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#32,084
National first-name rank
People counted
264
264 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
59.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Keiton
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Keiton is White at 59.5%. The next largest groups are Black (20.1%) and Two or More Races (11.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Keiton described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Keiton at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White59.5% · 157
- Black or African American20.1% · 53
- Two or more races11.4% · 30
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.7% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 2
Popularity
Keiton: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Keiton from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 121 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Keiton by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Keiton during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Keiton
The name Keiton is a unique and intriguing one, with its origins shrouded in mystery. It is believed to have originated from the ancient Celtic language, spoken by the Gauls and other Celtic tribes across Europe during the Iron Age. The name is thought to be a variation of the Celtic word "Ceiton," which translates to "the wise one" or "the learned one."
In the early medieval period, the name Keiton was not widely documented or recorded. However, there are references to individuals bearing this name in some ancient Celtic texts and oral traditions. One such reference is found in the Welsh manuscript known as the "Black Book of Carmarthen," which dates back to the 13th century. In this manuscript, a character named Keiton is mentioned as a wise druid who played a significant role in the tales of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Keiton appears in the genealogical records of the O'Neill clan, a powerful Irish dynasty that ruled parts of Ulster from the 6th to the 16th century. According to these records, a chieftain named Keiton O'Neill lived in the 9th century and was renowned for his wisdom and leadership.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Keiton. One such person was Keiton the Scribe, a 12th-century Welsh monk who was renowned for his calligraphy skills and his work in transcribing ancient manuscripts. Another notable Keiton was Keiton the Bard, a 15th-century Welsh poet and storyteller whose works were widely celebrated for their lyrical beauty and historical significance.
In the 17th century, a Scottish physician named Keiton MacDonald made significant contributions to the field of medicine. He was known for his innovative treatments and his dedication to serving the poor and underprivileged. Additionally, in the 19th century, a British explorer named Keiton Livingstone gained fame for his expeditions across Africa and his efforts to map uncharted territories.
Perhaps the most renowned individual with the name Keiton was Keiton the Brave, a legendary Celtic warrior who lived in the 5th century. According to folklore, Keiton led his clan in numerous battles against invading forces and was revered for his bravery and tactical brilliance on the battlefield.
While the name Keiton may be obscure in modern times, its rich history and ties to ancient Celtic culture make it a fascinating and unique moniker, carrying with it a sense of wisdom, courage, and a connection to the past.
People
Keiton + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Keiton as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Keiton: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Keiton?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 279 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Keiton going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,228,510 US residents.
Is Keiton a common name?
We classify Keiton as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 282 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Keiton most popular?
The single biggest year for Keiton was 2007, when 19 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Keiton is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Keiton in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 264 people with the name Keiton, or 0.09 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #32,084 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Keiton in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Keiton?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Keiton leans strongly male. 256 people counted with this name were male (98.1%), compared with 5 female bearers (1.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Keiton?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Keiton is White at 59.5%. The next largest groups are Black (20.1%) and Two or More Races (11.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Keiton most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Keiton in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.5% (157 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Keiton in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Keiton a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Keiton in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Keiton still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Keiton in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Keiton can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are called Keiton?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.