NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Kellie

A feminine variant of the Scottish surname Kelley or Kelly.

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2015. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Kellie is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Kellie popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2015 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5730, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1996, with 60 births.

This profile covers 322 England and Wales registrations across 17 recorded years from 1996 to 2015. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 5% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 722 living people in the UK are called Kellie. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2016 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Kellie ranked #5730 for girls in England and Wales in 2015, with 3 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 1996, when 60 girls were registered as Kellie.
  • Kellie ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #351 in 2007.
  • About 722 living people in the UK are estimated to have Kellie as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#5730

2015

Births in 2015

3

Latest year

Peak year

1996

60 births

Estimated living

722

2026

Meaning

What does Kellie mean?

The name Kellie originated in the Scottish Gaelic language, derived from the word "caillie," which means "bright" or "resplendent." It emerged as a diminutive form of the more common Scottish name Caileigh or Cailean, which itself is derived from the Gaelic "Cailìn," meaning "young woman" or "girl."

The earliest recorded use of the name Kellie dates back to the 16th century in Scotland, where it was predominantly used as a feminine name. It was particularly popular in the Highlands and Islands regions of Scotland during this period.

One of the earliest historical references to the name Kellie can be found in the records of the MacLean Clan, a prominent Scottish clan from the Hebrides Islands. In the late 16th century, there was a notable figure named Kellie MacLean, who was the daughter of Lachlan Mor MacLean, the 16th Chief of the Clan.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Kellie. One of the earliest recorded was Kellie Burne (1586-1654), a Scottish poet and author from Perthshire, who was known for her work "The Recreations of Philomythie and Sociable Companions."

In the 18th century, Kellie Leitch (1712-1789) was a prominent Scottish botanist and naturalist, known for her contributions to the study of plants and her extensive collection of botanical specimens.

Another notable figure was Kellie Dunbar (1841-1923), a Scottish suffragette and activist who campaigned for women's rights and was involved in the women's suffrage movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

In the 20th century, Kellie Martin (born 1975) is an American actress best known for her role as Rebecca "Becca" Jacobs in the television series Life Goes On, which ran from 1989 to 1993.

More recently, Kellie Pickler (born 1986) is an American country music singer and television personality who gained fame as a contestant on American Idol in 2006 and later released several successful albums and singles.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Kellie over time

The chart below shows babies named Kellie registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2015. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Kellie, the clearest high point is 1996. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2015, compared with 60 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Kellie
015304560199620052015

Decades

Kellie by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Kellie was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2010s #4838 16 4
2000s #1685 131 9
1990s #604 175 4

Geography

Where Kellie is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Kellie. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Kellie ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #351 in 2007.

Northern Ireland
4
Scotland
4

Across the UK

Kellie in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#606 in 2006

28 years of NRS records, 358 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#351 in 2007

10 years of NISRA records, 51 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Kellie

  • Kellie Shirley

    actor

    British actress

    1983-

  • Kellie While

    singer

    English singer

    1976-

  • Kellie Bright

    actor; film actor

    English actress

    1976-

  • Kellie Armstrong

    politician

    British politician (born 1970)

    1970-

  • Kellie Larkin

    association football player

    English footballer

Related

Names similar to Kellie

FAQ

Kellie: questions and answers

How popular is the name Kellie in the UK right now?

In 2015, Kellie was ranked #5730 for girls in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.

When was Kellie most popular?

The peak year on record was 1996, with 60 babies registered as Kellie in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Kellie?

A feminine variant of the Scottish surname Kelley or Kelly.

How many people are called Kellie in the UK?

A total of 322 babies have been registered as Kellie across the 17 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 358 more in Scotland and 51 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Kellie most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Kellie ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #351 in 2007. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.