boy's name
Kayden
KAY-den
- Origin Modern coinage
- Gender Boy
- Letters 6
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 105,665
the United States
#135
2025 births
Kayden is a boy's name of modern American coinage with no settled origin. It appears to be built from the Kay- sound plus the fashionable -den ending, and reference works retrofit Irish and Welsh derivations that the record does not support.
- Kayden is a name of Modern coinage origin.
- Peaked in 2014, when 5,136 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,212 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1989.
Kayden over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1980s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1980s | 6 |
| 1990s | 696 |
| 2000s | 17,254 |
| 2010s | 43,844 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 19,917 |
What Kayden means
Kayden has no established meaning. Sources offer companion, from a claimed Irish Cadán, and fighter, from a Welsh root — but the name's own history points to invention from sound rather than descent from either.
Where Kayden comes from
Kayden belongs to a family of names — Aiden, Jayden, Brayden, Hayden, Caden — that rose together in America from the 1990s, sharing an -aden ending rather than an etymology. Hayden and Aiden have genuine older roots; Kayden and Jayden appear to be built on the pattern rather than inherited. The Irish surname Mac Cadáin is sometimes offered as a source, but our records show Kayden absent from birth data until 1989, which is very hard to reconcile with descent from a medieval Irish name. The honest position is that it was coined.
Kayden in use
Our data first records Kayden in 1989 and shows it peaking in 2014, now stable. That shape — total absence, then a sharp rise within one generation — is the signature of a coined name rather than a revived one, and it is the same curve Jayden and Brayden trace.
How popular is Kayden?
In 2025, Kayden was given to 2,735 babies in the United States, ranking #135 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Kayden is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Kayden is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Kaydën | Kaydën is a rare spelling of Kayden, written with a diaeresis and recorded about 25 times, mostly in France. | 25 |
| Kaÿden | Kaÿden is a variant spelling of Kayden, recorded in France. | 20 |
Names that peaked alongside Kayden
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Kayden also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Kayden over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
2 nicknames for Kayden
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Kayden in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
- Arabic
- Caden
Sibling names for Kayden
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Kayden — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Kayden
What does the name Kayden mean?
There is no established meaning. It appears to be a modern coinage built on the -aden sound pattern.
Is Kayden an Irish name?
Probably not. The Irish Mac Cadáin is sometimes offered, but Kayden is absent from birth records until 1989.
Why are there so many spellings?
Coined names have no traditional spelling to anchor them, so Caden, Kaden, Caiden and Kaiden all coexist.
How popular is the name Kayden?
In 2025, Kayden was given to 2,735 babies in the United States, ranking #135 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Kayden a girl's or a boy's name?
Kayden is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
When was Kayden most popular?
Kayden peaked in 2014, when 5,136 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Kayden?
Kayden is usually shortened to Kay and Kade.
Is Kayden a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Kayden currently ranks #66 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.