Etimoloji
kilpi + -lä; compare Kilpi, Kilpinen. Kilpelä is primarily found in Kainuu and North Ostrobothnia, while the variant Kilpeläinen is found mainly in Savonia and Karelia, and Kilpiäinen in Karelia. Forms and variants of this surname were not consistently distinguished in the 16th century, suggesting that they had not become established surnames by then, only later.