Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Cal?
Births per year, rank history and how many Cals are alive today.
Cal (male) is a shortened form of the name Calvin. Although Cal itself was given to 4 babies in England and Wales in 2025 (ranked 4275th as a registered name), most Cals are registered as Calvin, which ranked 771st in 2025 with 43 babies.
Most people called Cal are registered as Calvin, and share that name's profile: the Calvin you are most likely to meet is around 29 years old - or else around 17: the name has two living generations. Half of all Calvins born in England and Wales are between 13 and 31, and there are at least 3,800 of them alive today. Only some Calvins go by Cal.
How many babies are named Cal or Calvin each year?
Combined registrations of Calvin, Cal. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does Calvin rank as a registered name?
Where does Cal rank as a registered name?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
Is Cal short for Calvin?
Yes - Cal is a shortened form of Calvin. Cals are usually registered as Calvin at birth.
When was the name Cal most popular?
The full name Calvin peaked in 1998, when 169 babies in England and Wales were given the name. Cal itself peaked as a registered name in 2003, with 14 babies.
How many people are called Cal?
There's no official count of people who go by Cal, because it's a nickname rather than a registered name. What we can say: at least 3,800 people registered as Calvin born in England and Wales are alive today, and some of them go by Cal.
How old is the typical Cal?
Most people called Cal are registered as Calvin. Most living Calvins are between 13 and 31; the most common age is about 29. There is a second cluster around 17.
Is Cal becoming more or less popular?
Declining: recent figures are a fraction of the 1998 peak.