Unisex · #11,156 in 2026

Kary

Kary is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include:

Current Rank
#11,156
Peak Rank
#1,325 (1972)
Total Babies
2K
5-Yr Trend
Stable
👧 Girl peak #1,325 (2K total)
👦 Boy peak #1,081 (1K total)
👧As Girl Name
1936
First Year
2023
Last Year
1972
Peak Year
#1325
Peak Rank
2K
Total Count
80
Years Active
👦As Boy Name
1917
First Year
2005
Last Year
1958
Peak Year
#1081
Peak Rank
1K
Total Count
71
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Kary

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Kary is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include:

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

The Story of Kary

As a girl name

American parents first put Kary on the record books as a girl name in 1936, with 5 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1972, when 76 Karys were born — ranking #1,325 that year. About 29% of every Kary on record arrived during the 1970s, its defining decade. Kary last appeared in the published SSA data in 2023, with 8 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 2K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1930s to the 2020s.

As a boy name

Kary first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a boy name in 1917, with 6 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 1958: 50 births, good for #1,081 nationwide. About 29% of every Kary on record arrived during the 1960s, its defining decade. Kary last appeared in the published SSA data in 2005, with 6 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 1K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1910s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Girls Boys

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Names that sound like Kary

Phonetically similar names — useful when Kary 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 Kary

What does the name Kary mean?
Kary is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include:
How popular is Kary in 2026?
In 2026, Kary ranks #11,156 among girls' names in the U.S., with 8 babies given the name that year.
When was Kary most popular?
Kary reached its peak popularity in 1972, ranking #1,325 that year with 76 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Kary most popular?
Kary has historically been most popular in Arizona, Michigan, Illinois. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Kary.
Is Kary a unisex name?
Yes — Kary is used for both girls and boys in U.S. records, with about 58% of Karys assigned female and 42% assigned male historically.
What names go well with Kary?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Kary include Chester, Cleona, Wilmer. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Kary

Kary is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1936 and has accumulated 2K births in the dataset. Kary's peak popularity came in 1972 when it ranked #1,325. Use the chart and map above to compare Kary's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

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.