girl's name
Kennedy
KEN-uh-dee
- Origin Irish
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 3
- Letters 7
- Popularity Top 100 (US)
- Births on record 108,739
the United States
#85
2025 births
Kennedy is a name of Irish origin meaning "helmeted head" or "ugly head," from the Gaelic ceann, head, and éidigh. It is a genuine descriptive byname, and the family it named descends from Brian Boru, the eleventh-century High King of Ireland.
- Kennedy is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in 2015, when 4,688 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 1,098 babies in the United States is given this name.
- Kennedy started out as a boys' name and is now given almost entirely to girls.
- First appears in US birth records in 1912.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Kennedy over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1910s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 51 |
| 1920s | 91 |
| 1930s | 62 |
| 1940s | 102 |
| 1950s | 191 |
| 1960s | 1,145 |
| 1970s | 273 |
| 1980s | 590 |
| 1990s | 9,826 |
| 2000s | 29,283 |
| 2010s | 40,090 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 19,416 |
What Kennedy means
Kennedy means helmeted head, or by a less flattering reading misshapen head, from ceann, a head, with a second element meaning armoured or ugly. Bynames describing appearance were entirely normal in Gaelic naming and carried no insult once hereditary.
Where Kennedy comes from
Kennedy anglicizes the Irish Ó Cinnéide, from ceann, head, and éidigh, variously translated as helmeted or ugly. The family took its name from Cinnéidigh, a nephew of Brian Boru, and became lords of Ormond in what is now County Tipperary. Descriptive bynames of this type are common in Gaelic surnames — Cameron means crooked nose, Campbell crooked mouth — and Kennedy belongs to that pattern. Its American prominence comes from the political family, and its use as a girls' given name is recent, rising sharply after the 1960s.
Kennedy in use
Kennedy descends from a nephew of Brian Boru, the High King who broke Viking power in Ireland.
How popular is Kennedy?
In 2025, Kennedy was given to 3,019 babies in the United States, ranking #85 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
Where Kennedy 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.
Names that peaked alongside Kennedy
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Kennedy also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Kennedy over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
3 nicknames for Kennedy
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.
Kennedy 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.
Sibling names for Kennedy
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Kennedy — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Kennedy
What does the name Kennedy mean?
Kennedy means "helmeted head," from the Irish ceann, head, and éidigh.
Is Kennedy an Irish name?
Yes. It anglicizes Ó Cinnéide, a family descended from a nephew of Brian Boru.
Is Kennedy a boy's or a girl's name?
It is given predominantly to girls in modern American use.
How popular is the name Kennedy?
In 2025, Kennedy was given to 3,019 babies in the United States, ranking #85 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
How many syllables are in Kennedy?
Kennedy has 3 syllables.
When was Kennedy most popular?
Kennedy peaked in 2015, when 4,688 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Kennedy?
Kennedy is usually shortened to Kenny, Ken and Kenna.
Is Kennedy a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Kennedy currently ranks #85 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.