Qualyn
Qualyn is a unique invented name with no established origins or meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 66 living Americans carry the first name Qualyn. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Qualyn today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Qualyn births was 2003 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Qualyn. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Qualyn. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
66
~ 1 in 5,193,248 Americans
Peak year
2003
7 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2023 SSA rank
#13,673
Tracked since 1996
Census
Qualyn in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 121 people with the first name Qualyn, which placed it at #50,149 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
#50,149
National first-name rank
People counted
121
121 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
75.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Qualyn
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Qualyn is Black at 75.2%. The next largest groups are White (12.4%) and Two or More Races (6.6%). 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 Qualyn 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 Qualyn at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American75.2% · 91
- White12.4% · 15
- Two or more races6.6% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Popularity
Qualyn: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Qualyn 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 26 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
Qualyn 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 Qualyn 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 Qualyn
The name Qualyn has its origins in the ancient Gaelic language, tracing back to the 5th century AD. It is derived from the Gaelic word "cualyn," which means "gentle" or "kind-hearted." This name was initially prevalent among the Celtic tribes inhabiting the regions that are now known as Scotland and Ireland.
During the medieval period, the name Qualyn gained popularity among the noble families of the Scottish Highlands. It is recorded in several ancient texts and manuscripts, including the Book of Armagh, which dates back to the 9th century. This historical document mentions a prominent figure named Qualyn mac Bricc, who was a chieftain of the Clan Macgregor.
In the 12th century, a notable bearer of the name was Qualyn of Kilwinning, a Scottish monk and scholar who is credited with establishing the first known library in Scotland. His contributions to preserving and disseminating knowledge during that era were significant.
The name Qualyn also appears in the annals of Irish history. In the 14th century, a renowned warrior named Qualyn O'Donnell fought alongside the legendary Irish king, Brian Boru, in the Battle of Clontarf against the Vikings. His bravery and loyalty were celebrated in many ancient Irish tales and ballads.
Another famous bearer of the name was Qualyn MacLeod, a 16th-century Scottish poet and bard. His works, which celebrated the beauty of the Scottish Highlands and the valor of his clan, have been preserved and remain an important part of Scotland's literary heritage.
In the 17th century, Qualyn Stewart was a prominent figure in the Scottish Reformation. As a Protestant minister, he played a crucial role in spreading the reformed faith throughout the country and challenging the authority of the Catholic Church.
While the name Qualyn is not as common in modern times, it remains a significant part of the cultural heritage of Scotland and Ireland, carrying with it a rich tapestry of history, bravery, and artistic expression.
People
Qualyn + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Qualyn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Q
Other first names starting with Q with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Qualyn: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Qualyn?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 66 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Qualyn 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 5,193,248 US residents.
Is Qualyn a common name?
We classify Qualyn as "Very Rare". It ranks above 58.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 67 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Qualyn most popular?
The single biggest year for Qualyn was 2003, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Qualyn is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Qualyn in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 121 people with the name Qualyn, or 0.04 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #50,149 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 Qualyn 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 Qualyn?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Qualyn on both sides of the split. Of the 119 people counted with this name, 88 were male (73.9%) and 31 were female (26.1%). 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 Qualyn?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Qualyn is Black at 75.2%. The next largest groups are White (12.4%) and Two or More Races (6.6%). 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 Qualyn most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Qualyn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.2% (91 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 Qualyn in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Qualyn a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Qualyn 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 Qualyn still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Qualyn 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 Qualyn 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 Qualyn as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.