Fun Facts About the Name Kelby
- More than 5 thousand babies named Kelby: U.S. records list 5,582 babies given the name Kelby from 1880 through 2025. Of these, 1,563 girls received the name Kelby - about 1 girl for every 3 boys.
What Does the Name Kelby Mean?
Kelby is an English name taken from a place name, and its elements are Old Norse rather than Old English. The Lincolnshire village of Kelby most likely goes back to Old Norse kelda, "spring" or "well," combined with býr, "farmstead" or "settlement," giving the literal sense "farmstead at the spring" or "settlement by a spring." The second element is sometimes given as bý, "farm, estate," which yields the same overall meaning. This is a topographical description of where a farm stood - near a source of water - not a statement about a person's character. As a given name, Kelby is a transferred use of the surname, which in turn came from the village.
Kelby Name History & Origins
The surname Kelby is a locational surname, meaning it identified a person by the place he came from. Its main source is the village of Kelby in Lincolnshire, eastern England. That village is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086, where its name appears in forms such as Chelebi, indicating that a Norse-derived name was already attached to the settlement in the eleventh century. The surrounding region lay within the Danelaw, the part of England under Scandinavian influence, which is why Old Norse words like kelda and býr appear in local place names.
Locational surnames of this kind became hereditary in England over the later Middle Ages and the early modern period as families moved away from their home villages and the place name became a fixed family identifier. The given name Kelby is a much later development: it is a transferred use of the surname, appearing chiefly in the United States, where surname-derived first names have been common. It has been used for boys and, less often, for girls.
How Popular is the Name Kelby?
Kelby recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1991. Its best rank was #746 in 1991.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #7,682 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 2024 | #6,773 | 17 | 0.0011% |
| 2023 | #10,735 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 2022 | #6,846 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2021 | #9,250 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 2020 | #5,567 | 22 | 0.0014% |
| 2019 | #6,081 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2018 | #6,663 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2017 | #8,547 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #6,292 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 2015 | #5,751 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2014 | #4,838 | 29 | 0.0016% |
| 2013 | #5,574 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 2012 | #4,550 | 32 | 0.0018% |
| 2011 | #4,413 | 33 | 0.0019% |
| 2010 | #4,251 | 35 | 0.0020% |
| 2009 | #5,013 | 29 | 0.0016% |
| 2008 | #3,452 | 48 | 0.0025% |
| 2007 | #3,507 | 47 | 0.0024% |
| 2006 | #3,894 | 39 | 0.0021% |
| 2005 | #3,619 | 41 | 0.0022% |
| 2004 | #3,295 | 46 | 0.0025% |
| 2003 | #2,934 | 52 | 0.0028% |
| 2002 | #2,657 | 58 | 0.0032% |
| 2001 | #2,583 | 59 | 0.0033% |
| 2000 | #2,880 | 50 | 0.0028% |
| 1999 | #2,451 | 59 | 0.0033% |
| 1998 | #2,594 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 1997 | #2,145 | 65 | 0.0037% |
| 1996 | #2,534 | 50 | 0.0029% |
| 1995 | #2,296 | 58 | 0.0033% |
| 1994 | #2,606 | 48 | 0.0027% |
| 1993 | #1,995 | 70 | 0.0039% |
| 1992 | #1,708 | 88 | 0.0048% |
| 1991 | #1,665 | 90 | 0.0048% |
| 1990 | #3,256 | 34 | 0.0018% |
| 1989 | #4,582 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 1988 | #4,566 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1987 | #3,914 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 1986 | #6,837 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1985 | #6,689 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1984 | #5,357 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1983 | #8,470 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1981 | #7,056 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1980 | #11,160 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1979 | #9,513 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1977 | #7,926 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| 1976 | #7,664 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| 1974 | #7,229 | 7 | 0.0005% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #5,313 | 18 | 0.0011% |
| 2024 | #6,305 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2023 | #4,976 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2022 | #4,142 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2021 | #4,312 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 2020 | #4,489 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 2019 | #5,056 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 2018 | #2,972 | 40 | 0.0022% |
| 2017 | #3,725 | 29 | 0.0016% |
| 2016 | #3,482 | 32 | 0.0017% |
| 2015 | #2,831 | 42 | 0.0022% |
| 2014 | #2,910 | 40 | 0.0021% |
| 2013 | #2,578 | 47 | 0.0025% |
| 2012 | #2,224 | 59 | 0.0031% |
| 2011 | #2,490 | 50 | 0.0026% |
| 2010 | #1,918 | 74 | 0.0039% |
| 2009 | #2,423 | 53 | 0.0027% |
| 2008 | #1,853 | 79 | 0.0039% |
| 2007 | #1,885 | 76 | 0.0037% |
| 2006 | #1,885 | 72 | 0.0035% |
| 2005 | #1,703 | 79 | 0.0040% |
| 2004 | #1,340 | 110 | 0.0055% |
| 2003 | #1,293 | 109 | 0.0055% |
| 2002 | #1,715 | 68 | 0.0035% |
| 2001 | #1,237 | 108 | 0.0056% |
| 2000 | #1,577 | 75 | 0.0038% |
| 1999 | #1,123 | 118 | 0.0061% |
| 1998 | #1,014 | 134 | 0.0070% |
| 1997 | #1,137 | 110 | 0.0058% |
| 1996 | #1,185 | 97 | 0.0051% |
| 1995 | #947 | 138 | 0.0072% |
| 1994 | #878 | 152 | 0.0079% |
| 1993 | #863 | 151 | 0.0077% |
| 1992 | #855 | 154 | 0.0077% |
| 1991 | #746 | 187 | 0.0093% |
| 1990 | #931 | 123 | 0.0060% |
| 1989 | #943 | 117 | 0.0058% |
| 1988 | #900 | 114 | 0.0060% |
| 1987 | #1,014 | 88 | 0.0047% |
| 1986 | #1,276 | 58 | 0.0031% |
| 1985 | #1,339 | 52 | 0.0028% |
| 1984 | #1,433 | 45 | 0.0025% |
| 1983 | #1,456 | 43 | 0.0024% |
| 1982 | #1,793 | 32 | 0.0018% |
| 1981 | #1,566 | 39 | 0.0022% |
| 1980 | #1,350 | 49 | 0.0027% |
| 1979 | #1,412 | 44 | 0.0026% |
| 1978 | #1,551 | 37 | 0.0023% |
| 1977 | #1,301 | 48 | 0.0029% |
| 1976 | #1,274 | 48 | 0.0031% |
| 1975 | #1,270 | 46 | 0.0029% |
| 1974 | #1,235 | 46 | 0.0029% |
| 1973 | #1,085 | 56 | 0.0036% |
| 1972 | #1,076 | 57 | 0.0035% |
| 1971 | #1,190 | 48 | 0.0027% |
| 1970 | #1,255 | 44 | 0.0024% |
| 1969 | #1,751 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 1968 | #1,664 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 1967 | #2,208 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1966 | #3,383 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1964 | #3,456 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1961 | #4,374 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1960 | #3,498 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1959 | #3,810 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1958 | #2,931 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1957 | #2,738 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1954 | #3,635 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1953 | #2,459 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1952 | #3,560 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1951 | #3,216 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1950 | #2,902 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1949 | #3,974 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1948 | #3,943 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Kelby Shapes Your Personality and Life?
EXTREMES in fortune, health and spirituality. You are very versatile, idealistic and intuitive. You either enjoy great success or suffer abject misery. The solution is service to others. Use your leadership abilities for humanity and not for self-glorification. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
You are always looking for a chance to do your own thing, to be your own person, and to have things done your own way.
✦ Kelby's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Kelby's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.