Kal
How to say it: KAL · /ˈkæl/
Short form of names like Kaleb and Kalman - also Sanskrit 'time' - punchy modern choice.
Kal was the 486th most popular boys’ name in the United States in 2025, given to 60 babies (Social Security Administration). The 2020s are its busiest decade so far, its births are up 3.0-fold in ten years, and it is projected to rise to #281 by 2030.
Updated · SSA 2025 data, published May 2026 · How we compute these figures
Key facts
| Rank among boys’ names, 2025 | #486 |
|---|---|
| Babies born in 2025 | 60 |
| Share of births | 1 in 5,399 |
| Peak decade | 2020s |
| Change over 10 years | ×3.0 |
| Projected rank for 2030 (estimate) | #281 |
Sources: Social Security Administration (SSA). How we compute these figures.
Its life, decade by decade
Kal is climbing: the 2020s are already its best decade.
What goes with it
In the classroom
In a class of 25 children born in 2025, the chance that another child is called Kal is about under 1 in 200.
Around the world
This spelling is used in English, Hebrew, Hindi.
Famous people named Kal
- Kal Penn (born 1977)American actor, author, and former White House staff member in the Barack Obama administration
- Kal Naismith (born 1992)Scottish association football player
- Kal David (1943–2022)Blues guitarist, singer and songwriter
From Wikidata and Wikipedia
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