Kenneth

Last seen for girls in 2019 at #12,448 · #294 for boys in 2025, 1,148 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
#13
1939 · 14,715 births
Debut · boys
1880
32 births
In top 100 · boys
104 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
1,283,974
since 1880

Kenneth over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201944peak #13, 1939boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025—#2941,148
2024—#2841,190
2023—#2621,321
2022—#2631,312
2021—#2581,373
2020—#2431,483
2019#12,4487#2331,623
2018—#2251,671
2017—#2171,766
2016#16,2155#2081,921
2015—#1982,033
2014—#1912,153
2013—#1872,177
2012—#1752,224
2011—#1702,217
2010#16,9925#1602,428
2009—#1512,612
2008#15,4056#1372,967
2007#17,6365#1353,108
2006#11,4179#1293,243
2005#13,0107#1223,368
2004#6,76817#1193,425
2003#10,4259#1113,643
2002—#1043,665
2001#13,5216#973,907
2000#13,1546#944,152
1999#9,4799#894,285
1998#9,2609#874,586
1997#6,16315#834,659
1996#7,57411#774,973
1995#5,95815#725,226
1994#5,71316#655,679
1993#3,87727#606,276
1992#4,52822#596,732
1991#3,93626#547,576
1990#2,90039#528,262
1989#3,04535#538,555
1988#1,80269#518,567
1987#1,59178#538,354
1986#1,42090#508,453
1985#1,85660#478,992
1984#1,36886#468,790
1983#1,44780#458,965
1982#1,68467#459,354
1981#1,43385#419,472
1980#1,48281#419,608
1979#1,66167#419,236
1978#1,61466#419,021
1977#1,49873#399,452
1976#1,40675#389,127
1975#1,58662#359,634
1974#1,53263#3410,143
1973#1,15195#2810,979
1972#1,30378#2712,334
1971#1,42773#2514,763
1970#1,108106#2516,800
1969#1,066106#2317,553
1968#1,09994#2318,077
1967#1,04697#2219,263
1966#1,011104#2120,834
1965#982111#2122,677
1964#932127#1824,850
1963#1,12694#1825,235
1962#978119#1825,241
1961#1,23280#1626,100
1960#1,12693#1627,701
1959#1,005110#1526,640
1958#1,028103#1426,684
1957#1,17381#1428,064
1956#1,22872#1627,432
1955#1,19770#1526,743
1954#1,27860#1726,186
1953#1,33253#1725,507
1952#1,19563#1625,909
1951#1,19061#1625,841
1950#1,39643#1523,813
1949#1,15462#1523,589
1948#1,15760#1523,550
1947#1,22854#1524,586
1946#1,16554#1522,042
1945#1,15546#1618,096
1944#1,11549#1618,093
1943#1,10353#1519,112
1942#1,00660#1518,210
1941#1,41830#1516,143
1940#97154#1515,132
1939#1,07944#1314,715
1938#99251#1414,399
1937#1,19636#1413,219
1936#1,23034#1412,486
1935#1,08441#1512,067
1934#99348#1511,800
1933#98549#1511,410
1932#91359#1411,742
1931#78474#1411,568
1930#75586#1711,705
1929#74289#1810,841
1928#82177#1711,167
1927#81780#1810,848
1926#87971#1810,342
1925#1,07450#1910,146
1924#1,15146#1910,355
1923#1,03753#219,734
1922#1,19042#219,258
1921#1,37434#228,959
1920#1,28236#237,840
1919#1,39331#266,796
1918#1,12643#276,809
1917#1,40228#276,141
1916#1,33230#276,012
1915#1,47524#285,681
1914#1,38521#304,178
1913#1,52815#333,065
1912#1,71911#332,538
1911—#401,148
1910—#43880
1909#1,9576#41746
1908—#40692
1907—#47589
1906—#45534
1905—#52474
1904#1,6596#57414
1903—#67330
1902—#78275
1901—#78246
1900—#90279
1899—#87214
1898—#100191
1897—#105164
1896—#106175
1895—#131127
1894—#144105
1893—#17283
1892—#157102
1891—#19165
1890—#18672
1889—#19766
1888—#26245
1887—#27235
1886—#27538
1885—#25841
1884—#33128
1883—#32426
1882—#37722
1881—#29629
1880—#29132
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Kenneth was already there! It came in at #291, and was given to 32 baby boys.

Quietest stretch: 1880–1884, when fewer than 33 boys a year got the name.

Where Kenneth is popular in 1944

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #21 for boys · 8 births · 1 in 72 boysAKMaine: #23 for boys · 91 births · 1 in 84 boysMEVermont: #15 for boys · 44 births · 1 in 59 boysVTNew Hampshire: #16 for boys · 59 births · 1 in 63 boysNHWashington: #15 for boys · 306 births · 1 in 66 boysWAIdaho: #13 for boys · 85 births · 1 in 60 boysIDMontana: #14 for boys · 76 births · 1 in 59 boysMTNorth Dakota: #11 for boys · 139 births · 1 in 41 boysNDMinnesota: #17 for boys · 411 births · 1 in 62 boysMNIllinois: #13 for boys · 1,169 births · 1 in 57 boysILWisconsin: #13 for boys · 573 births · 1 in 50 boysWIMichigan: #14 for boys · 951 births · 1 in 56 boysMINew York: #18 for boys · 1,480 births · 1 in 74 boysNYMassachusetts: #17 for boys · 570 births · 1 in 66 boysMARhode Island: #17 for boys · 105 births · 1 in 57 boysRIOregon: #15 for boys · 183 births · 1 in 61 boysORNevada: #16 for boys · 20 births · 1 in 55 boysNVWyoming: #13 for boys · 48 births · 1 in 45 boysWYSouth Dakota: #14 for boys · 98 births · 1 in 54 boysSDIowa: #15 for boys · 411 births · 1 in 53 boysIAIndiana: #16 for boys · 472 births · 1 in 70 boysINOhio: #14 for boys · 982 births · 1 in 64 boysOHPennsylvania: #16 for boys · 1,183 births · 1 in 71 boysPANew Jersey: #16 for boys · 490 births · 1 in 70 boysNJConnecticut: #20 for boys · 194 births · 1 in 80 boysCTCalifornia: #16 for boys · 1,119 births · 1 in 76 boysCAUtah: #14 for boys · 102 births · 1 in 70 boysUTColorado: #15 for boys · 174 births · 1 in 65 boysCONebraska: #13 for boys · 226 births · 1 in 49 boysNEMissouri: #15 for boys · 570 births · 1 in 57 boysMOKentucky: #13 for boys · 431 births · 1 in 67 boysKYWest Virginia: #17 for boys · 242 births · 1 in 78 boysWVVirginia: #16 for boys · 354 births · 1 in 83 boysVAMaryland: #16 for boys · 212 births · 1 in 86 boysMDDelaware: #15 for boys · 36 births · 1 in 68 boysDEArizona: #23 for boys · 68 births · 1 in 102 boysAZNew Mexico: #24 for boys · 65 births · 1 in 105 boysNMKansas: #14 for boys · 276 births · 1 in 57 boysKSArkansas: #20 for boys · 235 births · 1 in 85 boysARTennessee: #16 for boys · 417 births · 1 in 76 boysTNNorth Carolina: #17 for boys · 470 births · 1 in 89 boysNCSouth Carolina: #25 for boys · 196 births · 1 in 122 boysSCDistrict of Columbia: #16 for boys · 128 births · 1 in 78 boysDCOklahoma: #15 for boys · 350 births · 1 in 62 boysOKLouisiana: #19 for boys · 284 births · 1 in 95 boysLAMississippi: #30 for boys · 165 births · 1 in 144 boysMSAlabama: #22 for boys · 322 births · 1 in 101 boysALGeorgia: #22 for boys · 326 births · 1 in 112 boysGAHawaii: #15 for boys · 83 births · 1 in 62 boysHITexas: #19 for boys · 838 births · 1 in 94 boysTXFlorida: #18 for boys · 256 births · 1 in 92 boysFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · boys
  1. North Dakota#11 · 1 in 41
  2. Wyoming#13 · 1 in 45
  3. Nebraska#13 · 1 in 49
  4. Wisconsin#13 · 1 in 50
  5. Illinois#13 · 1 in 57

Best ever in a state: #6 in Utah, 1910.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
North Dakota#111391 in 41
Idaho#13851 in 60
Illinois#131,1691 in 57
Kentucky#134311 in 67
Nebraska#132261 in 49
Wisconsin#135731 in 50
Wyoming#13481 in 45
Kansas#142761 in 57
Michigan#149511 in 56
Montana#14761 in 59
Ohio#149821 in 64
South Dakota#14981 in 54
Utah#141021 in 70
Colorado#151741 in 65
Delaware#15361 in 68
Hawaii#15831 in 62
Iowa#154111 in 53
Missouri#155701 in 57
Oklahoma#153501 in 62
Oregon#151831 in 61
Vermont#15441 in 59
Washington#153061 in 66
California#161,1191 in 76
District of Columbia#161281 in 78
Indiana#164721 in 70
Maryland#162121 in 86
Nevada#16201 in 55
New Hampshire#16591 in 63
New Jersey#164901 in 70
Pennsylvania#161,1831 in 71
Tennessee#164171 in 76
Virginia#163541 in 83
Massachusetts#175701 in 66
Minnesota#174111 in 62
North Carolina#174701 in 89
Rhode Island#171051 in 57
West Virginia#172421 in 78
Florida#182561 in 92
New York#181,4801 in 74
Louisiana#192841 in 95
Texas#198381 in 94
Arkansas#202351 in 85
Connecticut#201941 in 80
Alaska#2181 in 72
Alabama#223221 in 101
Georgia#223261 in 112
Arizona#23681 in 102
Maine#23911 in 84
New Mexico#24651 in 105
South Carolina#251961 in 122
Mississippi#301651 in 144

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Kenneth
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 10 spots since 2024 (#284 → #294)
  • 51 spots since 2020 (#243 → #294)
  • 96 spots since 2015 (#198 → #294)
  • Biggest jump: 73 spots in 1885 (#331 → #258)
  • Biggest drop: 81 spots in 1882 (#296 → #377)
Rise & fade · boys
59 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1939 at #13 (14,715 births)
  • Births halved by 1992, 53 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 104 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 104 yrs · run 1898–2001
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 73
  • Highest: 1 in 73 boys born in 1951 were named Kenneth (1.4%)
  • Latest: 1 in 1,488 boys born in 2025 (0.07%)
  • Its best rank, #13 in 1939, was only 1 in 75 (1.3%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1950s
  • 20.5% of all boys named Kenneth (262,819) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s362#197 (1889)#288
1890s1,298#87 (1899)#138
1900s4,579#40 (1908)#60
1910s43,248#26 (1919)#31
1920s99,490#17 (1928)#20
1930s125,111#13 (1939)#15
1940s198,553#15 (1947)#15
1950s262,819#14 (1957)#16
1960s227,531#16 (1960)#20
1970s111,489#25 (1970)#33
1980s89,110#41 (1980)#47
1990s58,254#52 (1990)#70
2000s34,090#94 (2000)#120
2010s20,213#160 (2010)#196
2020s7,827#243 (2020)#267

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Kenneth in 1944

girls
#1,115
49 births · 1 in 27,086 girls
boys
#16
18,093 births · 1 in 75 boys

Top girls' names in 1944

  1. #1Mary62,476
  2. #2Barbara39,196
  3. #3Linda38,415
  4. #4Patricia36,874
  5. #5Carol30,456
  6. #6Sandra26,024
  7. #7Nancy23,218
  8. #8Sharon22,433
  9. #9Judith22,431
  10. #10Betty19,761
  11. #1,115Kenneth49

Top boys' names in 1944

  1. #1James76,951
  2. #2Robert70,855
  3. #3John66,616
  4. #4William52,375
  5. #5Richard45,643
  6. #6David37,382
  7. #7Charles34,662
  8. #8Thomas31,604
  9. #9Michael26,717
  10. #10Ronald25,513
  11. #16Kenneth18,093
More about 1944

girls

1,327,223 girls got a published name in 1944; 1 in 27,086 of them was named Kenneth, which outranked 78.7% of the 5,243 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.2% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kenneth
  1. #1,104Joycelyn50
  2. #1,104Sharleen50
  3. #1,104Thomasina50
  4. #1,115Kenneth49
  5. #1,115Abbie49
  6. #1,115Annemarie49
  7. #1,115Caroll49
  8. #1,129Carmel48
  9. #1,129Eloisa48
  10. #1,129Emogene48

Tied with 13 names at #1,115; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1943
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,229Dorinda#1,834 → #605
  2. ↑ 611Deirdre#1,556 → #945
  3. ↑ 504Alana#1,251 → #747
  4. ↑ 460Elyse#1,327 → #867
  5. ↑ 407Joella#1,395 → #988
Fallers
  1. ↓ 613Michal#996 → #1,609
  2. ↓ 493Aloma#762 → #1,255
  3. ↓ 448Louvenia#916 → #1,364
  4. ↓ 347Norine#889 → #1,236
  5. ↓ 341Lyla#864 → #1,205

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,362,875 boys got a published name in 1944; 1 in 75 of them was named Kenneth, which outranked 99.6% of the 3,909 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 34.4% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Kenneth
  1. #13Joseph21,176
  2. #14George20,419
  3. #15Gary20,058
  4. #16Kenneth18,093
  5. #17Paul16,661
  6. #18Edward16,482
  7. #19Jerry16,282
Biggest movers since 1943
Risers
  1. ↑ 647Rickie#1,461 → #814
  2. ↑ 586Rusty#1,577 → #991
  3. ↑ 585Humberto#1,280 → #695
  4. ↑ 408Llewellyn#1,343 → #935
  5. ↑ 402Hilario#1,308 → #906
Fallers
  1. ↓ 359Elwyn#923 → #1,282
  2. ↓ 356Albin#856 → #1,212
  3. ↓ 348Prentiss#980 → #1,328
  4. ↓ 286Barrie#969 → #1,255
  5. ↓ 269Duke#986 → #1,255

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1944 →