Boys' name · peaked in 2002
Caleb name popularity since 1925
324,086 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Caleb. Half of them were born in 2006 or earlier, so the typical Caleb is about 20 years old in 2026. Caleb peaked in 2002 as the #35 name for boys, and it ranked #58 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 324,086
- Named Caleb, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #58
- for boys in 2025 (5,217 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.8% boys
- 653 girls · 323,433 boys
- Most popular in
- Alaska
- 2.11× its national share
Peak year is the year Caleb made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Caleb births per year, 1925–2025
2002 was the biggest year for Caleb both by count and as a share of all babies.
- Fastest rise: Between 1972 and 1977, Caleb became 6.2× more common, from 1 in 14,200 baby boys to 1 in 2,310.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Caleb's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Caleb.
Decade by decade
Babies named Caleb in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 0 | 193 | – |
| 1930s | 0 | 316 | #1,274 |
| 1940s | 0 | 312 | #1,541 |
| 1950s | 0 | 416 | #1,185 |
| 1960s | 0 | 518 | #1,193 |
| 1970s | 0 | 4,012 | #381 |
| 1980s | 125 | 20,644 | #136 |
| 1990s | 148 | 66,298 | #54 |
| 2000s | 216 | 110,087 | #35 |
| 2010s | 120 | 86,734 | #37 |
| 2020–25 | 44 | 33,903 | #58 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
51.5% of babies named Caleb from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Z years (1997–2012). The full split by generation:
Where Caleb is most popular
The index compares Caleb's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Caleb.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Alaska | 2.11× | 1,019 |
| Nevada | 1.54× | 1,786 |
| Idaho | 1.51× | 1,949 |
| Tennessee | 1.46× | 10,019 |
| Vermont | 1.44× | 779 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Caleb and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Caleb (this page) | 323,433 | 2002 |
| Kaleb | 86,649 | 2009 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Caleb's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Caleb.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Caleb (2002).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data