Keith

The name originated as a Scottish surname and place name in East Lothian, likely derived from a Brittonic Celtic word meaning wood or forest. The Clan Keith held the hereditary title of Great Marischal of Scotland for centuries. American parents adopted it as a given name in the late nineteenth century, and the record shows its first entries in 1888 before it expanded into nationwide use by the nineteen-fifties.

A Keith is difficult to picture in a stroller. The name carries the texture of a canvas jacket and a key ring with at least two keys to locks that no longer exist. With an average age of fifty-four, living bearers split evenly between baby boomers and Generation X, holding thirty-five percent apiece. In everyday practice, the name is far more likely to appear on a driver's license renewal than on a kindergarten cubby.