ESC Name Rank Total Searching... No names found Try searching for: Emma, Liam, Olivia, Noah... 1904 First Year 2019 Last Year 1964 Peak Year #932 Peak Rank 5K Total Count 101 Years Active 🌍 ## Meaning & Origin of Kenneth What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures. Kenneth is a given name of Gaelic origin. The name is an Anglicised form of two entirely different Gaelic personal names: Cainnech and Cináed. The modern Scottish Gaelic form of Cainnech is Coinneach; the name was derived from a byname meaning "handsome", "comely". Source: [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth) (CC BY-SA 3.0). [Read more → ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth) ### Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name) * Scottish * English * Swedish * Danish * Norwegian 📜Etymology The second part of the name Cinaed is derived either from the Celtic \*aidhu , meaning "fire", or else Brittonic jʉ:ð meaning "lord". [![Wikipedia thumbnail for Kenneth](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/History-kenneth.jpg)](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth) 📖 ## The Story of Kenneth Kenneth first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1880, with 32 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1957, when 28,060 Kenneths were born — ranking #14 that year. As of 2026, Kenneth ranks #289 for baby boys with 1,148 births, falling sharply (-22%). In total, more than 1.3M Kenneths have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s. ## Popularity Over Time ## 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 🔗 ## Variants & Related Forms of Kenneth Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Kenneth. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name. * Coinneach * [Ken](/ken) * [Kenith](/kenith) * [Kennet](/kennet) * [Kennith](/kennith) * [Kenny](/kenny) ⭐ ## Notable people named Kenneth A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia. * ●Kenneth (1927–2013), born Kenneth Battelle, American celebrity hairdresser * ●Kenneth MacAlpin , Kenneth I of Scotland * ●Kenneth II of Scotland * ●Kenneth III of Scotland * ●Kenneth J. Alford (1881–1945), English composer * ●Kenneth Allen (murderer) (born 1942), American murderer * ●Kenneth Allott (1912–1973), Anglo-Irish poet and academic * ●Kenneth Alwyn (1925–2020), English conductor and composer Source: [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth) (CC BY-SA 3.0). [Read more → ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kenneth) 🎶 ## Names that sound like Kenneth Phonetically similar names — useful when Kenneth is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name. * [Keneth](/keneth) * [Kennith](/kennith) * Cometh * Keinath * [Kennis](/kennis) * [Kenet](/kenet) * [Kenna](/kenna) * [Kennett](/kennett) * [Kennet](/kennet) * [Kinnick](/kinnick) * Kinit * Cunit Source: [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated. ❓ ## Frequently Asked Questions about Kenneth What does the name Kenneth mean? Kenneth is a given name of Gaelic origin. The name is an Anglicised form of two entirely different Gaelic personal names: Cainnech and Cináed. The modern Scottish Gaelic form of Cainnech is Coinneach; the name was derived from a byname meaning "handsome", "comely". What is the origin of the name Kenneth? Kenneth has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: Scottish, English, Swedish, Danish, Norwegian. How popular is Kenneth in 2026? In 2026, Kenneth ranks #289 among boys' names in the U.S., with 1,148 babies given the name that year. When was Kenneth most popular? Kenneth reached its peak popularity in 1957, ranking #13 that year with 28,060 babies given the name. In which U.S. states is Kenneth most popular? Kenneth has historically been most popular in Utah, Hawaii, Louisiana. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Kenneth. Is Kenneth a unisex name? In U.S. Social Security records, Kenneth is primarily a boy's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a girl's name. What names go well with Kenneth? Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Kenneth include Eric, Sebastian, Arthur. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data. What are nicknames or variants of Kenneth? Common variants and related forms of Kenneth include Coinneach, Ken, Kenith, Kennet, Kennith, Kenny. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms. ## Similar Names [👧FlonniePeak #932](/flonnie)[👧MelaniaPeak #932](/melania)[👧CambriaPeak #932](/cambria)[👧ElaPeak #931](/ela)[👧ZetaPeak #931](/zeta)[👧VeolaPeak #931](/veola)[👧LavellePeak #933](/lavelle)[👧KevinPeak #933](/kevin) ## About the name Kenneth Kenneth is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 1.3M births in the dataset. Kenneth's peak popularity came in 1957 when it ranked #13\. Use the chart and map above to compare Kenneth's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices. ### Continue exploring * [ Top names of 1957 → ](/year/1957) * [ Names of the 1950s → ](/decade/1950s) * [ Names starting with "K" → ](/letter/k) * [ Browse all boy names → ](/names/boys) * [ Top names of 2026 → ](/year/2026) Data sources * Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. [Social Security Administration ](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/). 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 ](https://www.behindthename.com/) (used under their public API terms). * Meaning prose and editorial summary — [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/) article extracts, licensed under [CC BY-SA 3.0 ](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/). * Predicted nationality distribution — [Nationalize.io ](https://nationalize.io/). * Phonetically similar names — [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). 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.