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Callen

#516 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Descendant of Cathalán, through Callan

Callen has been given to 10,105 babies in the U.S. since 1954. In 2025 it ranked #516 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2023, with 687 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 94% boys, 6% girls all-time.

Babies named Callen, 2025

1 in 5,730

Callen over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls
020040060080018801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Callen over time

In 2025, Callen went to 3% girls and 97% boys.

19542025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Callen: meaning, origin, and history

Descendant of Cathalán, through Callan

surname transfer

What Callen means

Callen belongs to the name family reached through Callen → Callan. Its meaning is “descendant of Cathalán”.

Origin, language, and formation

Callen is used in English. Its origins include surname transfer.

Callen is recorded as a surname transferred into given-name use.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include Callan.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 9,501 boys were recorded with the name Callen between 1954 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 687 in 2023; its best national rank was #450 in 2023.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #534 in 2020 to #516 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #520 in 2015 to #516 in 2025.

In the United States, 604 girls were recorded with the name Callen between 1983 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 34 in 2023; its best national rank was #3,907 in 1994.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #4,779 in 2020 to #6,164 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #7,695 in 2015 to #6,164 in 2025.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

How common is Callen?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 5,730
579 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only
1 in 2,950
0.03% of boys
Rank, 2025
#516
of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
3,970 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Callen sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 1002%
School of 5008%

Put another way: gather 3,970 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Callen. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Callens were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Callen was born before 2018 — so the typical Callen is around 7 today.

Median birth year
2018
About 7 years old
Biggest decade
2010s
50.2% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
95.0%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
9,501
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

2010s — 50.2% of all recorded uses (4,768).

Is Callen rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
−36
Places dropped
Rank vs 5 years ago
+18
Places climbed
Rank vs 10 years ago
+4
Places climbed
Births vs 10 years ago
1.05×
More babies than then
Share of its own peak
84.3%
Peak was 2023 (687)
Years since peak
2
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Shifting
24.2% average annual change
Best rank ever
#450
2023

Spellings of Callen

Callen is not the most common spelling — Caleb is, with 21.2% against Callen's 0.62%.

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Where Callen is used — boys

Across 2016–2025, Callen was most concentrated in Iowa — about 1 in 917 boys, against 1 in 2,755 across all states with data. It was least common in Nevada (1 in 25,000).

4109 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Iowa1 in 917
  2. 2Wisconsin1 in 935
  3. 3Nebraska1 in 1,087
  4. 4New Hampshire1 in 1,099
  5. 5South Dakota1 in 1,205
  6. 6Minnesota1 in 1,235
  7. 7Kansas1 in 1,333
  8. 8North Dakota1 in 1,449

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings.

Geographically, Callen is somewhat regional — more concentrated than 48% of the names used widely enough to compare. See the most regional names

Where Callen is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Callen was most concentrated in Texas — about 1 in — girls, against 1 in 1,116,447 across all states with data.

00 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Texas1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Callen has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Callen around the world

Where Callen ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

  • England & Wales
    1996–2025
    #2,952
    in 2025
  • Scotland
    2001–2025
    #495
    in 2025
  • Northern Ireland
    2017–2017
    #363
    in 2017
  • Ireland
    2015–2024
    #785
    in 2024
  • France
    2010–2025
    #4,616
    in 2025
  • Canada
    2001–2024
    #622
    in 2024
  • South Australia
    1955–2013
    #389
    in 2013

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics, National Records of Scotland, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, Central Statistics Office, Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques, Statistics Canada and Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). ONS, NRS, NISRA data under Open Government Licence v3.0. CSO, CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0. INSEE data under Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0. StatCan data under Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Callen by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#516
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 18
Best rank ever
#450
2023
Peak year
2023
687 that year
First recorded
1954
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
9,501
Count in 2025
579

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#6,164
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Down 1,385
Best rank ever
#3,907
1994
Peak year
2023
34 that year
First recorded
1983
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
604
Count in 2025
19

Names similar to Callen

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

CalenCallanCallumCalderCaleCalumCullenKellenCallahanDaylenArlenHarlenBraylenCalCalvertKallenZaylenGalenWaylenKylenJaylenTaylenKalenCalin

Names with a curve like Callen

Not spelling — timing. These names rose, peaked and faded in the same years as Callen, so they read as being from the same moment even when they look nothing alike.

SylasAyaanKysonLeonidasTrippFlynnJasiahRoninRaidenEdenCassiusRowen

Sibling names for Callen

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Callen

Top names of 2023, Callen's peak yearThe 2020s in fullOther names that peaked in 2023Boys' names starting with C