Kaydee
A diminutive form of the English name Katie, derived from Katherine.
Name Census estimates that about 2,344 living Americans carry the first name Kaydee. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kaydee today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kaydee births was 2009 (114 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kaydee. 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
2.3K
~ 1 in 146,226 Americans
Peak year
2009
114 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,029
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Kaydee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kaydee 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 840 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
Kaydee 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 Kaydee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kaydees live
The SSA's state-level files cover 19 states and territories. Texas, California, Utah recorded the most babies named Kaydee, while Mississippi, Louisiana, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 37 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kaydee
The name Kaydee has its origins in the English language and can be traced back to the late 19th century. It is a diminutive form of the name Katherine, which itself derives from the Greek name Aikaterine, meaning "pure." The spelling "Kaydee" emerged as a playful variation of the nickname "Kay" or "Katy," which were common shortenings of Katherine.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kaydee can be found in the 1892 novel "The Manxman" by British writer Hall Caine, where a character is referred to as "Kaydee." This suggests that the name was in use, at least in literary circles, by the late 19th century.
Throughout the 20th century, several notable individuals bore the name Kaydee. One such person was Kaydee Gresham (1904-1992), an American actress and dancer who appeared in various Broadway productions and Hollywood films in the 1920s and 1930s. Another notable Kaydee was Kaydee Rae (1919-2008), a Canadian singer and actress who performed in radio, television, and theater productions throughout her career.
In the realm of literature, Kaydee Boykins (1927-1995) was an American writer and educator who published several books and articles on African American literature and culture. Her works, such as "Celebrating Ourselves: An Introduction to Black Literature" (1975), were influential in promoting the study of Black writers and their contributions to American literature.
The name Kaydee also found its way into the world of sports. Kaydee Shedd (1938-2021) was an American professional golfer who competed on the LPGA Tour in the 1960s and 1970s, winning multiple tournaments during her career.
Another notable bearer of the name was Kaydee Filegar (1946-2021), an American artist and sculptor known for her large-scale public art installations and sculptures. Her works can be found in various cities across the United States, including the "Quantum Ribbons" sculpture in Indianapolis, Indiana.
While the name Kaydee may have originated as a playful diminutive, it has been embraced by individuals across various fields and has left its mark on history through their contributions and achievements.
People
Kaydee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kaydee 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
Kaydee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kaydee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,344 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kaydee 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 146,226 US residents.
Is Kaydee a common name?
We classify Kaydee as "Rare". It ranks above 94.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,395 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kaydee most popular?
The single biggest year for Kaydee was 2009, when 114 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kaydee is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kaydee a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kaydee 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.