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Kelsey

Quick answerKelsey derives from the Old English elements "ceol" (ship) and "sæ" (sea), meaning "island of the ship" or "from the ship island," with roots in Anglo-Saxon geography.

English · Girl · 2 syllables

K
Top 1,000

Popularity & facts

Relative popularity index, 2010–2025
GenderGirl
US Rank#814
TrendFalling ↓
Peak year1992
Syllables2
OriginEnglish
LanguageEnglish
CultureEnglish
Letters6
Numerology5 Chaldean 1
Global rank#359

Popularity over time

Popularity index
Hover the line to see any year. 100 = most popular.

Historical popularity from 1880–2025 · US Social Security Administration data

About the name Kelsey

Kelsey derives from the Old English elements "ceol" (ship) and "sæ" (sea), meaning "island of the ship" or "from the ship island," with roots in Anglo-Saxon geography.

Cross-referenced with Wikidata/Wikipedia. AI-assisted, community-reviewable. Suggest an improvement.

Etymology

Kelsey derives from the Old English elements "ceol" (ship) and "sæ" (sea), meaning "island of the ship" or "from the ship island," with roots in Anglo-Saxon geography. The name is primarily used in English-speaking cultures, particularly in the United States and United Kingdom, with no specific religious association, though it gained modern popularity as a unisex given name during the late 20th century.

Kelsey currently ranks #814 in the United States as a girl's name. It reached its peak popularity around 1992.

Themeswater

Variants & nicknames

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