Asked by: Sumaia Eleno
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Where does the first name Kelly come from?

Last Updated: 1st February, 2020

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The Origin of Kelly
Kelly is the English form of the ancientIrishGaelic name Ceallach. It is also said tobetransferred from the Cornish name celli, which means woodorgrove. It is a very popular Irish name meaningwar,lively, and aggressive.

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Keeping this in view, where did the name Kelly come from?

Irish Surname - Kelly. The surname KellyinIreland is derived from O'Ceallaigh, which is based on thepopularpersonal name Ceallach, meaning either 'brightheaded' or'troublesome'. The O'Ceallaighs were a native Gaelicsept located inCounties Galway, Meath, Wicklow, Antrim andSligo.

Secondly, is Kelly a popular name? Kelly has been used in the United Stateseversince 1880, with over 554830 girls given the name inthepast 200 years. Kelly gained the most popularityas ababy name in 1977, when it's usage went upby147.58%.

Also to know, was Kelly a boy name first?

li/ is an English-languageunisexgiven name, derived from the Irish surnameKelly. Assuch, Kelly is historically a male-onlyname but haspredominantly been used as a feminine givenname since the1960s, though with a significant minorityusage as a masculinename, especially within Celticfamilies.

How do you spell Kelly in Irish?

In many cases Kelly is an Anglicisation oftheIrish surname Ó Ceallaigh(IPA[oːˈcal?ˠiː]), which means "descendantofCeallach" or it can also mean warrior or fighter.

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