unisex name
Kerry
KEH-ree
- Origin Irish
- Gender Unisex
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 107,180
Northern Ireland
#418
2020 births
Kerry is 53 percent female in our records — the fourth-closest to an even split on this site, behind only Emerson, Riley and Jackie. It names an Irish county meaning the people of Ciar.
- Kerry is a name of Irish origin.
- Peaked in 1960, when 3,127 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 43,057 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1920.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Kerry over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1920s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1920s | 109 |
| 1930s | 596 |
| 1940s | 5,517 |
| 1950s | 20,858 |
| 1960s | 27,509 |
| 1970s | 22,785 |
| 1980s | 11,999 |
| 1990s | 5,949 |
| 2000s | 2,077 |
| 2010s | 871 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 374 |
What Kerry means
Kerry means the people of Ciar, an Irish personal name meaning dark or black. The county name records a tribal territory rather than describing a landscape feature.
Where Kerry comes from
Kerry is the Irish county Ciarraí — the people of Ciar, a personal name built on ciar, dark or black, and Ciar was said to be a son of Fergus mac Róich. So the name is tribal territory rather than description: it marks whose land this was. The same ciar appears in Ciara and Ciaran. Kerry entered use as a given name in twentieth-century America and Australia, and it split almost evenly between the sexes rather than resolving to one, which very few names manage.
Kerry in use
Kerry peaked in the United States in 1960, when 3,127 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 2454th in the United States on 77 births, across 107,180 lifetime births. About 53 percent of recorded births are female, which places it fourth among the most evenly divided names on this site, behind Emerson, Riley and Jackie.
How popular is Kerry?
In 2025, Kerry was given to 77 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Kerry 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 Kerry
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Kerry also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Kerry over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Kerry 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 Kerry
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Kerry — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Kerry
What does the name Kerry mean?
The people of Ciar — an Irish personal name meaning dark or black.
Is Kerry a boys' or girls' name?
Genuinely both — 53 percent of the births in our records are female, the fourth-closest to even on this site.
Is Kerry related to Ciara?
Yes, through ciar, dark — the same element.
Is Kerry named after the county?
Yes, and the county is named for a tribal group rather than for the landscape.
How popular is the name Kerry?
In 2025, Kerry was given to 77 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
How many syllables are in Kerry?
Kerry has 2 syllables.
When was Kerry most popular?
Kerry peaked in 1960, when 3,127 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
Is Kerry a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Kerry currently ranks #2,454 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.