Kareena
A feminine name of Hindu origin meaning "lovely as the lotus flower".
Name Census estimates that about 1,450 living Americans carry the first name Kareena. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kareena today is around 23 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kareena births was 2002 (69 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kareena. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
1.4K
~ 1 in 236,382 Americans
Peak year
2002
69 babies that year
Average age
23
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,667
Tracked since 1970
Popularity
Kareena: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kareena from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 580 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kareena by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Kareena during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kareenas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, New York, Florida recorded the most babies named Kareena, while Illinois, Pennsylvania, New Jersey recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 62 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kareena
Kareena is a name with its origins rooted in the Sanskrit language, which was prevalent in ancient India. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word "Krishna," which means "dark" or "black," referring to the dark complexion associated with Lord Krishna, a prominent deity in Hinduism.
In the ancient Hindu text, the Mahabharata, there is a character named Karna, who is believed to be an incarnation of Lord Krishna. This connection between the name Kareena and its Sanskrit roots suggests a deep spiritual and cultural significance.
The name Kareena can also be traced back to the Persian language, where it is spelled as "Karina" and means "pure" or "beautiful." This linguistic connection highlights the cultural exchange and influence between ancient civilizations, particularly in the Indian subcontinent and the Persian Empire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kareena can be found in the 16th century, when a Mughal princess named Kareena Begum was born in the royal court of Emperor Akbar. This historical reference underscores the name's enduring presence across different eras and cultures.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Kareena. In the 17th century, Kareena Khan was a prominent female warrior and military leader in the Mughal Empire, renowned for her bravery and leadership skills. Another notable figure was Kareena Chohan, a 19th-century poet and writer from Punjab, whose literary works celebrated the rich cultural heritage of the region.
In more recent times, the name gained widespread recognition through the Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor Khan, born in 1980. Her successful career in Indian cinema has further popularized the name, making it a household name across the Indian subcontinent and beyond.
Additionally, Kareena Albers, born in 1963, was a German swimmer who competed in the Olympic Games and won multiple medals, bringing international acclaim to the name.
The name Kareena has also been associated with notable individuals in various fields, such as Kareena Townsend, a British entrepreneur and philanthropist born in 1967, and Kareena Sharma, an Indian-American author and journalist born in 1976.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Kareena
People
Kareena + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kareena as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kareena: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kareena?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,450 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kareena going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 236,382 US residents.
Is Kareena a common name?
We classify Kareena as "Rare". It ranks above 92.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,484 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kareena most popular?
The single biggest year for Kareena was 2002, when 69 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kareena is about 23 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kareena a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kareena in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.