Find out how popular the last name Kenan is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Kenan.

Kenan, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Kenan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kenan in America

Kenan is the 29768th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kenan surname appeared 790 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kenan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kenan to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Kenan

The surname Kenan originated in the Scottish Lowlands, where it is a variant of the name Kennan. The name Kennan is derived from the Gaelic word "ceann," meaning "head" or "chief," indicating that the bearer of the name may have been a leader or chieftain in their community.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname Kenan can be traced back to the 13th century in the region of Ayrshire, Scotland. One of the earliest documented individuals with this surname was Robert de Kenan, who was mentioned in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which recorded the names of Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England.

In the 16th century, the Kenan family held lands in the parish of Dairy, Ayrshire. A prominent member of the family during this time was John Kenan, who was a witness to a charter granted by King James V of Scotland in 1528.

The surname Kenan has also been associated with the place name Kennoway, a town in Fife, Scotland. The name Kennoway is believed to have originated from the Gaelic "Ceann an Uaimh," meaning "head of the cave," suggesting that the Kenan family may have had connections to this area.

One notable figure with the surname Kenan was Sir Walter Kenan (1550-1631), a Scottish landowner and judge who served as Lord Provost of Edinburgh from 1612 to 1614.

In the 17th century, members of the Kenan family migrated to Ireland, where they settled in counties such as Antrim and Down. One significant individual from this branch was John Kenan (1658-1721), a Presbyterian minister who played a role in the establishment of Presbyterianism in Ireland.

Another notable person with the surname Kenan was William Kenan (1798-1885), a Scottish-American industrialist and philanthropist who founded the Kenan Institute for the Study of Ethics at Duke University in North Carolina.

As the surname spread to other parts of the world, particularly through emigration, it has undergone various spelling variations, such as Kennan, Keenan, and Keenan.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kenan

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Kenan.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Kenan was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Kenan has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Kenan was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kenan, please contact us.

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