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Boy · Brittonic, through Scots
Keith Say it: KEETH
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Meaning From a Scottish place name and surname, probably from a Brittonic word for 'wood' (Welsh coed).
Likely the main view, with some doubt.
The surname of a Scottish noble family, it became a popular given name in Britain and America from the 1930s to the 1960s.
Its wave through time Fading since the 1960s
In the United States 0 2 4 6 8 1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020 Peak 1966 per 1,000 babies of that sex 438,249 babies given this name since 1888 At its height in 1966, about 1 in 154 boys 456 babies in 2020 Famous bearers Keith Richards, English guitarist Keith Haring, American artist Names worth a look Roy Boy From Scottish Gaelic ruadh 'red', originally a nickname for red hair. The popular meaning 'king', from French roi,… Victorian · peak 1890 Kyle Boy From a Scottish surname taken from the district of Kyle in Ayrshire; the district name is often derived from Gaelic… Modern · peak 1990 Bruce Boy From a Norman surname, from Brix in Normandy; its meaning is unknown. Victorian · peak 1951 Leslie Girl or boy From a Scottish place in Aberdeenshire and the family named for it; the original Gaelic meaning is uncertain, and… Victorian · peak 1969 Logan Boy From a Scottish surname taken from a place in Ayrshire, from Gaelic lagan 'little hollow'. Modern · peak 2017 Jamie Girl or boy A Scottish pet form of James, from Hebrew Ya'aqov (Jacob), traditionally read as 'heel-holder' or 'supplanter'; for… Victorian · peak 1976 Kathleen Girl An English form of Irish Caitlín, from Old French Cateline (Katherine). Katherine's origin is unknown; its link to… Victorian · peak 1949 Catherine Girl Greek Aikaterinē, of unknown origin. Its link to katharos 'pure' is a later folk etymology that changed the Latin… Early Medieval · peak 1909 Where this comes from United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.