Kanon
Kanon is a name with a single cultural origin: Japanese.
- Japanese
Meaning & Origin of Kanon
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Kanon is a name with a single cultural origin: Japanese.
Origin data from Behind the Name .
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- Japanese
The Story of Kanon
As a girl name
Kanon first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a girl name in 1999, with 6 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 2008: 16 births, good for #7,742 nationwide. About 53% of every Kanon on record arrived during the 2000s, its defining decade. Kanon last appeared in the published SSA data in 2024, with 7 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 158 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1990s to the 2020s.
As a boy name
American parents first put Kanon on the record books as a boy name in 1972, with 6 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 2015, when 127 Kanons were born — ranking #1,368 that year. About 53% of every Kanon on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Kanon ranks #3,249 for boys with 37 births, falling sharply (-48%). All told, over 2K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1970s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Kanon
Phonetically similar names — useful when Kanon is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Kanon
What does the name Kanon mean?
What is the origin of the name Kanon?
How popular is Kanon in 2026?
When was Kanon most popular?
In which U.S. states is Kanon most popular?
Is Kanon a unisex name?
What names go well with Kanon?
About the name Kanon
Kanon is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1972 and has accumulated 2K births in the dataset. Kanon's peak popularity came in 2015 when it ranked #1,368. Use the chart and map above to compare Kanon's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2015 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "K" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
- Browse unisex names →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.