# Keira (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/keira/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | Irish |
| Meaning | “black”, “dark”, “little dark one” |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Ciara, Kiara, Kiera, Keara, Keaira |
| US babies named this | 33,843 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 7 / 33,836 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 14,520, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

A modern feminine form of Kieran, from Irish ciar (“black, dark, little dark one”).

## What it means

Keira is grouped under black.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 1,789 | 176 |
| 2012 | 1,652 | 190 |
| 2013 | 1,572 | 203 |
| 2014 | 1,469 | 228 |
| 2015 | 1,312 | 245 |
| 2016 | 1,038 | 313 |
| 2017 | 990 | 332 |
| 2018 | 867 | 365 |
| 2019 | 888 | 357 |
| 2020 | 663 | 467 |
| 2021 | 662 | 472 |
| 2022 | 577 | 536 |
| 2023 | 524 | 568 |
| 2024 | 496 | 605 |
| 2025 | 469 | 622 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 7 | 10,465 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 693 | 88 |
| 2012 | 610 | 92 |
| 2013 | 488 | 110 |
| 2014 | 447 | 124 |
| 2015 | 341 | 159 |
| 2016 | 316 | 174 |
| 2017 | 261 | 203 |
| 2018 | 251 | 207 |
| 2019 | 223 | 223 |
| 2020 | 159 | 294 |
| 2021 | 147 | 324 |
| 2022 | 115 | 369 |
| 2023 | 125 | 345 |
| 2024 | 103 | 415 |
| 2025 | 109 | 388 |

## People named Keira

- Keira Knightley, British actress (born 1985)
- Keira Walsh, English footballer (born 1997)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.