Keshawna
Keshawna is a feminine name of African-American origin possibly derived from Kiswana, meaning "beautiful or pretty".
Name Census estimates that about 446 living Americans carry the first name Keshawna. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Keshawna today is around 30 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Keshawna births was 2000 (38 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Keshawna. 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
446
~ 1 in 768,507 Americans
Peak year
2000
38 babies that year
Average age
30
years old
2012 SSA rank
#15,949
Tracked since 1980
Popularity
Keshawna: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Keshawna from the 1980s through to the 2010s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 238 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Keshawna 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 Keshawna during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Keshawnas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Florida, Maryland, Illinois recorded the most babies named Keshawna, while Virginia, Illinois, Maryland recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 12 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Keshawna
The name Keshawna is a relatively modern invention, likely a variant or combination of other names from different cultural origins. It does not appear to have any direct ties to ancient texts, scriptures, or historical records.
The first part of the name, "Kesh," could potentially derive from the Sanskrit word "केश" (keśa), which means "hair" or "lock of hair." This Sanskrit root is found in various Indian names and words related to hair or beauty. However, the connection to the name Keshawna is speculative.
The latter part of the name, "awna," may have roots in African or African-American naming traditions, where names often combine elements from different languages or cultures. The "-awna" suffix could potentially be a variation of the common African name ending "-wana," which means "child" or "daughter" in various Bantu languages.
While the name Keshawna does not have a long historical trail, it has gained popularity in recent decades, particularly in certain regions of the United States. Some notable individuals who have borne the name Keshawna include:
1. Keshawna Wright, an American track and field athlete who competed in the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.
2. Keshawna Muhammad, an American basketball player who played for the University of Louisville from 2010 to 2014.
3. Keshawna Forrester, an American softball player who played for the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in the early 2010s.
4. Keshawna Barnes, an American singer and songwriter known for her work in the gospel and contemporary Christian music genres.
5. Keshawna Barber, an American entrepreneur and motivational speaker known for her work in promoting financial literacy and entrepreneurship.
These individuals, while not necessarily historically significant figures, have contributed to the growing recognition and popularity of the name Keshawna in various fields, from sports and music to business and public speaking.
People
Keshawna + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Keshawna 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
Keshawna: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Keshawna?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 446 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Keshawna 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 768,507 US residents.
Is Keshawna a common name?
We classify Keshawna as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 460 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Keshawna most popular?
The single biggest year for Keshawna was 2000, when 38 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Keshawna is about 30 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Keshawna a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Keshawna 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.