Kelii
A Hawaiian name meaning "the ray" or "the spear".
Name Census estimates that about 253 living Americans carry the first name Kelii. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kelii today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kelii births was 1990 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kelii. 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.
People living today
253
~ 1 in 1,354,760 Americans
Peak year
1990
14 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2023 SSA rank
#11,561
Tracked since 1973
Census
Kelii in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 290 people with the first name Kelii, which placed it at #30,183 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
#30,183
National first-name rank
People counted
290
290 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
36.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kelii
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kelii is Asian/Pacific Islander at 36.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (34.8%) and Hispanic (13.8%). 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 Kelii 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 Kelii at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander36.2% · 105
- Two or more races34.8% · 101
- Hispanic or Latino13.8% · 40
- White9.3% · 27
- Black or African American5.9% · 17
Popularity
Kelii: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kelii from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 71 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kelii 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 Kelii during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Keliis live
Origin
Meaning and history of Kelii
The name Kelii is believed to have originated from the Hawaiian language and culture. Its roots can be traced back to the Polynesian languages spoken in the Hawaiian Islands and other Pacific regions. The name Kelii is often considered a variant spelling or diminutive form of the more common Hawaiian name Keli'i.
Kelii is derived from the Hawaiian word "ke li'i," which means "the chief" or "the monarch." This suggests that the name was initially associated with royalty, nobility, or leadership roles within the Hawaiian community. The name's connection to chieftaincy and authority hints at its historical significance and the respect it may have commanded.
While there are no known historical references to the name Kelii in ancient Hawaiian texts or religious scriptures, it is believed to have been in use among the indigenous Hawaiian population for centuries. The earliest recorded examples of individuals bearing the name Kelii are likely found in historical records and genealogical accounts kept by Hawaiian elders and historians.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Kelii was Keliimaikai, a Hawaiian chief who lived in the late 18th century. He was a prominent figure during the reign of King Kamehameha I and played a role in the unification of the Hawaiian Islands.
Another historical figure named Kelii was Keliiahonui, a Hawaiian chief and warrior who lived in the early 19th century. He was known for his skills in battle and his loyalty to King Kamehameha I during the wars of unification.
In the late 19th century, Kelii Holokahiki was a respected Hawaiian musician and composer. He composed several traditional Hawaiian songs and contributed to the preservation of Hawaiian musical traditions.
During the early 20th century, Kelii Fairbanks was a Hawaiian scholar and educator who dedicated his life to the study and preservation of the Hawaiian language and culture. He authored several books and publications on Hawaiian history and traditions.
Another notable individual named Kelii was Kelii Bateman, a Hawaiian artist and sculptor who lived in the mid-20th century. His works celebrated the beauty of the Hawaiian Islands and the culture of its indigenous people.
These historical figures, while not an exhaustive list, provide a glimpse into the use and significance of the name Kelii throughout Hawaiian history. The name's connection to royalty, leadership, and cultural preservation reflects its deep-rooted ties to the Hawaiian heritage and the respect it held within the community.
People
Kelii + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kelii 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
Kelii: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kelii?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 253 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kelii 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 1,354,760 US residents.
Is Kelii a common name?
We classify Kelii as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 261 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kelii most popular?
The single biggest year for Kelii was 1990, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kelii is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kelii in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 290 people with the name Kelii, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #30,183 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 Kelii 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 Kelii?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kelii leans strongly male. 257 people counted with this name were male (90.8%), compared with 26 female bearers (9.2%). 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 Kelii?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kelii is Asian/Pacific Islander at 36.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (34.8%) and Hispanic (13.8%). 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 Kelii most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Kelii in the 2020 Census, accounting for 36.2% (105 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 Kelii in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kelii a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kelii 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 Kelii still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kelii 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 Kelii 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 have the name Kelii?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.