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

Kennon, 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 Kennon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kennon in America

Kennon is the 8178th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kennon surname appeared 4,053 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Kennon.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kennon 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 Kennon

The surname Kennon is of English origin, tracing its roots back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated as a locational name, derived from the place name Kennon or Kenyon, which referred to locations in various parts of England, including Lancashire, Cheshire, and Yorkshire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kennon can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that the name had already established itself in certain regions of the country by the late 11th century.

The name Kennon is thought to have evolved from the Old English words "cyn" or "cynn," meaning "family" or "kin," and "tun," meaning "settlement" or "enclosure." This combination likely referred to a settlement or enclosure belonging to a particular family or clan, giving rise to the place name and subsequently the surname.

In the 13th century, records show a Robert de Kenyon residing in Lancashire, indicating the presence of the name in that region. During the same period, the spellings "Kennion" and "Kenion" also appeared in various documents, reflecting the variations in spelling common during that era.

One notable historical figure bearing the surname Kennon was Sir Edward Kennon (1615-1689), an English judge and Serjeant-at-Law. He served as Chief Justice of the King's Bench in Ireland from 1677 to 1689.

Another prominent individual was Richard Kennon (1726-1791), a British naval officer who served as Governor of the British Leeward Islands from 1770 to 1776. He played a significant role in the American Revolutionary War, commanding naval forces in the West Indies.

William Kennon (1737-1804) was an American Revolutionary War officer and politician from Virginia. He served as a delegate to the Virginia Convention of 1788, where he voted to ratify the United States Constitution.

In the 19th century, Richard Kennon (1796-1865) was a prominent American politician and jurist from Virginia. He served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and as a judge on the Virginia Supreme Court of Appeals.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Kennon in the United States can be traced back to John Kennon, who arrived in Virginia from England in the 17th century and established a plantation along the James River.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kennon

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

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 Kennon 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 Kennon 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 Kennon was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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