| Conor | Kieran | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Lover of hounds | little dark one |
| Origin | Irish | irish |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | KON-er | KEER-uhn |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1961 | 1918 |
| Peak year | 1993 (1,250) | 2025 (817) |
| In 2025 | 292 | 817 |
| Trend | Rising | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Conor | Kieran |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 3,021 | 3,946 |
| 2010s | 6,939 | 5,282 |
| 2000s | 5,938 | 4,412 |
| 1990s | 8,244 | 2,177 |
| 1980s | 2,676 | 610 |
| 1970s | 482 | 415 |
| 1960s | 80 | 374 |
| 1950s | 0 | 222 |
| 1940s | 0 | 81 |
| 1930s | 0 | 48 |
| 1920s | 0 | 38 |
| 1910s | 0 | 8 |
Conor, from Conchobhar, is usually read “lover of hounds” or “desiring.”
Anglicized from Irish Ciaran, a diminutive of 'ciar' meaning 'black, dark', giving 'little dark one'. Borne by several early Irish saints.
Kieran is more popular than Conor today: about 817 US babies were given the name Kieran in 2025, compared with 292 named Conor.
Conor means Lover of hounds (Irish origin), while Kieran means little dark one (irish origin).
In US records, Conor first appears in 1961 and Kieran in 1918, so Kieran has the longer recorded history.