Kennady
A feminine variant of the Irish name Kennedy meaning "descendant of the misshapen head".
Name Census estimates that about 1,806 living Americans carry the first name Kennady. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Kennady today is around 17 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kennady births was 2007 (108 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kennady. 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.
Key insights
- • Kennady is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 17 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.8K
~ 1 in 189,786 Americans
Peak year
2007
108 babies that year
Average age
17
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,355
Tracked since 1993
Popularity
Kennady: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kennady from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 793 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
Kennady 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 Kennady during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kennadys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 17 states and territories. Texas, Ohio, Utah recorded the most babies named Kennady, while Wisconsin, Virginia, Oklahoma recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 24 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kennady
The name Kennady has its roots in the Gaelic language, originating from Ireland in the early centuries of the Common Era. It is derived from the Gaelic words "cenn" meaning "chief" or "leader" and "éidí" meaning "ugly" or "unlovely." The name was initially spelled as "Ceann Éidí" and was used to refer to someone who was considered a leader despite their unappealing physical appearance.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kennady can be found in the Annals of Ulster, an ancient chronicle of medieval Irish history. The Annals mention a figure named "Ceann Éidí mac Fínghin," who was a prominent chieftain in the 7th century AD. This suggests that the name was in use among the Irish nobility during that time period.
As the centuries passed, the name underwent various spelling variations, including "Ceinnéidigh," "Cennéidigh," and "Kennéidigh." These variations were influenced by the evolution of the Gaelic language and the adoption of English orthography in Ireland.
One of the most famous historical figures bearing the name Kennady was Brian Kennady (c. 1460-1490), an Irish nobleman and military commander who played a crucial role in the Gaelic resistance against English colonization in Ireland during the late 15th century. His exploits were celebrated in traditional Irish ballads and folklore.
Another notable Kennady was John Kennady (1558-1623), an Irish Roman Catholic priest and scholar who served as the Archbishop of Armagh in the early 17th century. He was a prominent figure in the Catholic Church in Ireland during a period of religious turmoil and conflict.
In the 18th century, the name Kennady gained prominence in Scotland, particularly in the Highlands and Islands. One famous bearer of the name was James Kennady (1714-1782), a Scottish poet and songwriter who composed several influential works in Scots Gaelic, preserving the cultural heritage of the Highland clans.
Moving forward in history, Michael Kennady (1805-1865) was an Irish-American politician and lawyer who served as the 15th Governor of Maryland from 1857 to 1861. He played a significant role in the political landscape of the United States during the tumultuous period leading up to the American Civil War.
In more recent times, the name Kennady has been associated with the renowned Kennedy family of American politicians and public figures. While the spelling differs slightly, the name Kennady is believed to share a common ancestry with the Kennedy surname, both originating from the Gaelic "Ceann Éidí."
People
Kennady + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kennady 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
Kennady: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kennady?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,806 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kennady 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 189,786 US residents.
Is Kennady a common name?
We classify Kennady as "Rare". It ranks above 93.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,830 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kennady most popular?
The single biggest year for Kennady was 2007, when 108 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kennady is about 17 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kennady a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kennady 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.