Baby Names US
girls' name ★ peaked 2016

Kenna

Gender Girl · 2% boys Rank 2025 #759 Trend → Stable

A female given name from Scottish Gaelic, masculine equivalent Kenneth.

Rank 2025
#759
among girls · ↓33 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
362
named Kenna · -7% vs 2024
How common
1 in 4,502
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2016
455 babies
All-time total
13,781
#1,381 all-time among girls
First recorded
1915
in Social Security records

Kenna popularity over time

13,781 babies have been named Kenna since 1915, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.080.150.230.318801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – 7 7 1 – –
1920s 10 16 26 3 +271% #4,940
1930s 63 7 70 7 +169% #2,664
1940s 253 28 281 28 +301% #1,475
1950s 521 34 555 56 +98% #1,263
1960s 683 12 695 70 +25% #1,176
1970s 735 13 748 75 +8% #1,298
1980s 841 16 857 86 +15% #1,355
1990s 1,409 14 1,423 142 +66% #1,002
2000s 2,999 5 3,004 300 +111% #751
2010s 3,647 58 3,705 371 +23% #661
2020s (to 2025) 2,375 35 2,410 402 +8% #679

Where Kenna is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 352 0.22 outside top 500
2027 347 0.22 outside top 500
2028 344 0.21 outside top 500
2029 341 0.21 outside top 500
2030 338 0.21 outside top 500

Where Kenna is most popular

Girls named Kenna per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.241 per 1,000. Strongest in South Dakota, Iowa, and Nebraska.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Kenna born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
South Dakota 13 0.911 +277%
Iowa 53 0.907 +276%
Nebraska 27 0.751 +211%
Oklahoma 45 0.611 +153%
Kansas 35 0.607 +151%
Arkansas 28 0.530 +119%
Montana 7 0.517 +114%
Wisconsin 53 0.515 +113%
Minnesota 49 0.454 +88%
Washington 63 0.436 +81%
Ohio 100 0.421 +75%
Indiana 58 0.413 +71%
Michigan 72 0.395 +64%
Pennsylvania 92 0.389 +61%
Louisiana 31 0.354 +47%
Missouri 42 0.348 +44%
South Carolina 31 0.345 +43%
Colorado 38 0.340 +41%
Idaho 11 0.329 +36%
Virginia 56 0.329 +36%
Tennessee 52 0.328 +36%
Alabama 28 0.298 +24%
Georgia 62 0.273 +13%
North Carolina 58 0.255 +5%
Utah 21 0.252 ≈ national
Massachusetts 29 0.240 ≈ national
Kentucky 20 0.234 ≈ national
Illinois 52 0.227 -6%
Florida 95 0.222 -8%
Oregon 14 0.215 -11%
Texas 162 0.201 -17%
West Virginia 5 0.191 -21%
Arizona 26 0.185 -23%
New Jersey 31 0.172 -29%
Maryland 18 0.170 -30%
New York 55 0.139 -42%
California 116 0.138 -43%
Mississippi 6 0.128 -47%
Connecticut 7 0.120 -50%
Alaska – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Maine – – –
North Dakota – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Rhode Island – – –
Vermont – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Kenna

Kenna is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #759 in 2025 with 357 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1915, 13,781 American babies have been named Kenna. Its peak came in 2016, when 455 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Kenna stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Kenna?

The median living Kenna is about 17 years old; half are between 8 and 31. An estimated 13 thousand people named Kenna are alive in the United States today.

median 17 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Kenna year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 357 #759 5 #13,015
2024 389 #726 – –
2023 377 #747 6 #11,580
2022 430 #679 7 #10,356
2021 406 #709 8 #9,282
2020 416 #684 9 #8,417
2019 436 #664 – –
2018 426 #686 8 #9,254
2017 404 #712 – –
2016 444 #661 11 #7,394
2015 422 #677 7 #10,130
2014 329 #842 – –
2013 253 #992 6 #11,496
2012 299 #886 10 #7,861
2011 316 #836 7 #10,243
2010 318 #845 9 #8,476
2009 378 #751 – –
2008 335 #843 – –
2007 343 #836 5 #13,461
2006 289 #916 – –
2005 293 #864 – –
2004 320 #795 – –
2003 301 #821 – –
2002 286 #810 – –
2001 239 #931 – –
2000 215 #990 – –
1995 140 #1,226 – –
1990 112 #1,416 – –
1985 97 #1,355 10 #4,212
1980 72 #1,617 – –
1975 73 #1,433 – –
1970 79 #1,337 – –
1965 68 #1,331 – –
1960 66 #1,359 7 #3,500
1955 56 #1,351 – –
1950 31 #1,697 – –
1945 25 #1,681 – –
1940 12 #2,494 9 #2,582
1935 7 #3,589 – –
1930 7 #3,864 – –
1925 – – 5 #4,584
1920 – – – –
1915 – – 7 #3,234
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Kenna, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Kenna?

The median living Kenna is about 17 years old. Half of all living Kennas are between 8 and 31 years old.

How many people named Kenna are alive today?

An estimated 13 thousand people named Kenna are alive in the United States, based on 13,781 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Kenna mean?

A female given name from Scottish Gaelic, masculine equivalent Kenneth.

How popular is the name Kenna in 2025?

Kenna ranked #759 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 357 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Kenna?

13,781 babies have been named Kenna in the United States since 1915, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Kenna most popular?

Kenna peaked in 2016, when 455 newborns received the name.

Is Kenna a boy or girl name?

Kenna is overwhelmingly a girl's name: 98% of babies with the name.

Is the name Kenna rising or falling?

Kenna is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Kenna become more popular?

Kenna looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 338 girls named Kenna in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Names like Kenna

Names that sound and feel close to Kenna: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Kenna with similar names → More names starting with K →