Boys' name · peaked in 1951
Kenneth name popularity since 1925
1,193,253 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Kenneth. Half of them were born in 1958 or earlier, so the typical Kenneth is about 68 years old in 2026. Kenneth peaked in 1951 as the #16 name for boys, and it ranked #294 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 1,193,253
- Named Kenneth, 1925–2025
- In 2025
- #294
- for boys in 2025 (1,148 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.6% boys
- 4,912 girls · 1,188,341 boys
- Most popular in
- Wyoming
- 1.45× its national share
Peak year is the year Kenneth made up the largest share of US boys, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Kenneth births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year by count was 1957. Measured as a share of all babies, Kenneth peaked in 1951.
- Steepest fall: Between 1969 and 1974, Kenneth's share of baby boys fell by 34%, from 1 in 102 to 1 in 155.
Shaded on the chart. This compares Kenneth's share of all US boys five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Kenneth.
Decade by decade
Babies named Kenneth in each decade, and its rank among boys' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 367 | 53,344 | – |
| 1930s | 522 | 125,111 | #15 |
| 1940s | 522 | 198,553 | #16 |
| 1950s | 716 | 262,819 | #15 |
| 1960s | 1,025 | 227,531 | #21 |
| 1970s | 758 | 111,489 | #35 |
| 1980s | 731 | 89,110 | #47 |
| 1990s | 189 | 58,254 | #72 |
| 2000s | 65 | 34,090 | #122 |
| 2010s | 17 | 20,213 | #198 |
| 2020–25 | 0 | 7,827 | #294 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 boys that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
40.8% of babies named Kenneth from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Baby Boom years (1946–1964). The full split by generation:
Where Kenneth is most popular
The index compares Kenneth's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Kenneth.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Wyoming | 1.45× | 2,354 |
| District of Columbia | 1.38× | 7,631 |
| Rhode Island | 1.37× | 5,858 |
| North Dakota | 1.34× | 5,069 |
| Montana | 1.33× | 4,693 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Kenneth and were given to at least 1,000 boys from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Boys | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Kenneth (this page) | 1,188,341 | 1951 |
| Kennith | 10,072 | 1940 |
| Keneth | 1,362 | 1932 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Kenneth's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Kenneth.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Kenneth (1951).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data