Given name & surname
Keir
“having dark features”
Keir is used as a given name and a surname. One interpretation is “having dark features.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One interpretation is “having dark features.”
Where it comes from
In Scottish use, Keir has a related form in Kerr. An origin associated with Kerr is Scottish.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Keir through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,117
- 1,053 boys · 64 girls
- Most popular year
- 1970
- 74 babies
- 2025
- 7
- #10,207 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +42%
- Rising
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 7 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 10,207 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 42.3% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 63 in 1970. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,010 as a first name in 2020; 761 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Keir’s family of names
Keir has a related form in Kiera. Keir has a related form in Kerr. Keir has a related form in Kear.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Keir has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Irish roots to each of them.
4 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Show 2 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Keir
- Keir StarmerPrime Minister of the United Kingdom from 2024 to 2026born 1962
- Keir DulleaAmerican actorborn 1936
- Keir GilchristCanadian actorborn 1992
- Keir O'DonnellAustralian–American actorborn 1978
- Keir MatherBritish politician (born 1998)
- Keir GilesBritish academicborn 1968
- Keir PearsonAmerican rower and Oscar nominated film screenwriterborn 1966
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Keir, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Keefe
“a handsome and beloved man”
>99% boys
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Bryon
Bryon is a masculine given name from Irish.
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Shan
“resembling coral” · “one who is wise and elderly”
96% boys · 4% girls
Gregor
“watchful” · “one who is vigilant; watch-”
>99% boys
Dermot
“a free man”
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“ruler of the world; a brown-haired warrior”
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Kinney
Kinney is a surname from Irish.
>99% boys