2000
#8,363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,636
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.35
Rare Last name
Kennon
A surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic "O Cainneoin," meaning "descendant of Cainnean" (a diminutive of "cainn," meaning "wolf").
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,964 Americans carry the last name Kennon. That puts it at #9,078 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,467 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Kennon surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Kennon with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 86,467
Census rank
#9,078
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,457 bearers of the surname Kennon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9078th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Kennon, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.7%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kennon
Among Census respondents with the surname Kennon, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.7%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Kennon bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Kennon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White69.7% · 2,409
- Black or African American20.5% · 708
- Two or more races4.7% · 162
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 144
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Kennon
Kennon appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#8,178
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,053
+417 bearers (+11.5%)
Per 100,000 1.37
Rank movement Up 185 places
2020
#9,078
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,457
-596 bearers (-14.7%)
Per 100,000 1.16
Rank movement Down 900 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,363 | 3,636 | 1.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,178 | 4,053 | 1.37 | +417 bearers (+11.5%) | Up 185 places |
| 2020 | #9,078 | 3,457 | 1.16 | -596 bearers (-14.7%) | Down 900 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Kennon surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #8,178 | #9,078 | -11.0% |
| Count | 4,053 | 3,457 | -14.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.37 | 1.16 | -15.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Kennon bearers went from 4,053 to 3,457 (-14.7% change). The surname moved down 900 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,178 to #9,078.
FAQ
Kennon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Kennon?
Name Census estimates that about 3,964 living Americans carry the surname Kennon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,467 residents.
How common is Kennon?
Kennon ranks #9,078 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.16 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,457 people with the surname Kennon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,964), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.16 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Kennon.
Has Kennon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Kennon went from 4,053 recorded bearers to 3,457. That is a decrease of 596 (-14.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,178 to #9,078.
What does the Census say about the background of Kennon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Kennon, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.7%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Kennon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.7% (2,409 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Kennon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (69.7%), Black (20.5%), Two or More Races (4.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Kennon (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Kennon mean?
A surname of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic "O Cainneoin," meaning "descendant of Cainnean" (a diminutive of "cainn," meaning "wolf"). The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Kennon (1.16 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Kennon?
See how many Americans have the surname Kennon on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.