Kelly (given name)
Gender | Unisex |
---|---|
Language(s) | English |
Origin | |
Language(s) | Irish |
Word/name | Kelly (surname) |
Kelly is an English-language unisex given name, derived from the Irish surname Kelly.
It has predominantly been used as a feminine given name, with a significant minority usage as a masculine name; during the peak of the name's popularity in the United States during the 1960s to 1970s, feminine usage was about four to five times as frequent as masculine usage.
Etymology
The surname Kelly has multiple origins. There is a Clan Kelly in Scotland, possibly derived from a toponym Kelloe. The Irish surname may be from either Ó Ceallaigh or Ó Cadhla, or yet again from a toponym such as Kelly, near Arbroath or Kellie, in Fife. The surname was established in the United States by the early 19th century, and it began to be used as a masculine name in the later 19th century. Feminine usage first appeared in the 1940s and surpassed masculine usage around 1957 due to the popularity of the American actress Grace Kelly.[1]
Popularity
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Kelly, as a girl's name, was ranked #900 in 1950, then steadily gained popularity until 1977 (peaking at rank #10); Kelly, as a boy's name, was consistently in the top 800 (but never the top 300) from 1881 to 1939, then steadily gained popularity until 1968 (peaking at rank #97). The girl's name reached two significant peaks, rank #12 in 1968, then declining to rank #23 in 1972, and again rising to rank #10 in 1977; both the girl's and the boy's name have been in steady decline since reaching their respective popularity peaks; the boy's name fell below rank #1000 in 2003; the girl's name lingers at rank #367 as of 2013. [2]
In the United Kingdom, it made its way into the top 50 during the 1970s and by 1984 was the 15th most popular female first name. However, 10 years later it had declined to 53rd place and by 1999 had fallen out of the top 100.[3]
People with the name
Feminine name
- Kelly Ayotte (born 1968), American politician
- Kelly Brook (born 1979), English model and actress
- Kelly Chen (born 1973), Chinese singer and actress
- Kelly Carlson (born 1976), American actress
- Kelly Clarkson (born 1982), American singer
- Kelly Fraga (born 1974), Brazilian volleyball player
- Kelly Haxton (born 1982), Canadian footballer
- Kelly Holmes (born 1970), British athlete
- Kelly Hoppen (born 1959), South African-British interior designer
- Kelly Hu (born 1968), American actress
- Kelly Johnson (1958–2007), English guitarist (Girlschool)
- Kelly Kelekidou (born 1979), Greek singer
- Kelly Key (born 1983), Brazilian singer
- Kelly Kulick (born 1977), American bowler
- Kelly Llorenna (born 1975), British singer
- Kelly MacDonald (born 1976), Scottish actress
- Kelly Marie (born 1957), Scottish singer
- Kelly McCormick (born 1960), American diver
- Kelly McGillis (born 1957), American actress
- Kelly McGonigal (born 1977), American psychologist
- Kelly Murphy (born 1977), American illustrator
- Kelly Murphy (born 1989), American volleyball player
- Kelly Osbourne (born 1984), English actress and designer
- Kelly Poon (born 1983), Chinese singer
- Kelly Preston (born 1962), American actress
- Kelly Price (born 1973), American singer
- Kelly Ripa (born 1970), American actress and talk show host
- Kelly Rosen (born 1995), Estonian footballer
- Kelly Rowland (born 1981), American singer (Destiny's Child)
- Kelly Sildaru (born 2002), Estonian freestyle skier
- Kelly Smith (born 1978), English footballer
- Kelly Sotherton (born 1976), British heptathlete
- Kelly Stefanyshyn (born 1982), Canadian swimmer
- Kelly van der Veer (born 1980), Dutch transsexual and TV personality
Masculine name
- Kelly Brown (born 1982), Scottish rugby player
- Kelly Blatz (born 1987), American actor and singer
- Kelly Chase (born 1967), Canadian ice hockey player and broadcaster
- Kelly DeVries (born 1956), American historian
- Kelly Gruber (born 1963), American baseball player
- Kelly Holcomb (born 1973), American football player
- Kelly Hrudey (born 1961), Canadian ice hockey player and broadcaster
- Kelly Johnson (1910–1990), American aeronautical engineer
- Kelly Johnson (born 1982), American baseball player
- Kelly D. Johnston (born 1956), American government official
- Kelly Jones (born 1964), American tennis player
- Kelly Jones (born 1974), Welsh musician
- Kelly Kirchbaum (born 1957), American football player
- Kelly Makin (fl. 2000s), Canadian television and movie director
- Kelly McCarty (born 1975), American–Russian basketball player
- Kelly Monteith (born 1942), American comedian
- Kelly Olynyk (born 1991), Canadian basketball player
- Kelly Pavlik (born 1982), American boxer
- Kelly Perdew (born 1967), American businessman, winner of The Apprentice 2
- Kelly Reno (born 1966), American actor
- Kelly Slater (born 1972), American surfer
- Kelly Stinnett (born 1970), American baseball player
- Kelly Tripucka (born 1959), American basketball player
Fictional characters
- Private Kelly, the main character in Kelly's Heroes
- Kelly Ashoona, character in Degrassi: The Next Generation
- Kelly Roberts, Barbie's younger sister
- Kelly, a female antagonist on the Teletoon Canadian animated sitcom Stoked
- Kelly, valley girl drag persona created by Liam Kyle Sullivan first for the video "Shoes"
- Kelly, signature of The Onion's editorial cartoonist Ward Sutton
- Kelly Bailey, played by Lauren Socha is a Misfits (TV series)' character.
- Dr. Kelly Brackett, played by Robert Fuller on the TV series Emergency!
- Kelly Bundy, played by Christina Applegate on the TV series Married... with Children
- Kelly Collins, DCOM in Cadet Kelly
- Kelly Cramer, on the soap opera One Life to Live
- Kelly Gaines, played by Jackie Swanson on the U.S. TV series Cheers
- Kelly Garrett (Charlie's Angels), played by Jaclyn Smith on the U.S. TV series Charlie's Angels
- Kelly Gibbs, played by Mary Mouser, Sam Schuder and Brenna Radding on the U.S. TV series NCIS
- Kelly Green, a minor character in the Relativity series.
- Kelly Kapoor, played by Mindy Kaling on the U.S. version of The Office
- Kelly Kelly, Stage name of American professional wrestler, model, and former WWE Diva Barbara Blank
- Kelly Leak, baseball-playing thug in the 1976 film The Bad News Bears
- Kelly Kapowski, played by Tiffani-Amber Thiessen on the U.S. TV series Saved by the Bell
- Kelly Prescott, "mean girl" in Meg Cabot's The Mediator
- Kelly Taylor, played by Jennie Garth on the U.S. TV series Beverly Hills, 90210
- Kelly Taylor, played by Brooke Kinsella on the British soap opera EastEnders
- Kelly Wanwright, played by Tanya Chisholm on the Nickelodeon TV series Big Time Rush
- Kelly Severide, played by Taylor Kinney on NBC's "Chicago Fire"
- Kelly Sutekh, a minor character in the Lorien Legacies series, is Adamus Sutekh's sister.