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

Kenny, 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 Kenny surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kenny in America

Kenny is the 2077th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kenny surname appeared 17,429 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Kenny.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kenny 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 Kenny

The surname Kenny is of Irish origin, derived from the Gaelic name Ó Ceinneididh, meaning "descendant of Cennéidigh." The name Cennéidigh is believed to be derived from the Old Irish words "cenn" meaning "head" and "éidigh" meaning "ugly" or "misshapen." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone with a distinctive or unusual head shape.

The surname Kenny is found predominantly in counties Sligo, Mayo, and Galway in the western province of Connacht, Ireland. It is thought to have originated in the region of Conmaicne Cuile Toladh, which encompassed parts of modern-day counties Sligo and Mayo. The name is first recorded in the Annals of Ulster in the 13th century, where it appears as "O'Cennedigh."

One of the earliest known mentions of the surname can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which records the death of "Donnchadh O'Cennedigh" in the year 1249. Another early reference is in the Pipe Roll of Cloyne, a medieval Irish record from the late 13th century, which lists a "David O'Kenidy."

Notable individuals with the surname Kenny throughout history include:

1. James Kenny (c. 1640 - c. 1720), an Irish Jacobite soldier and poet.
2. Sir Edward Kenny (1773 - 1848), an Irish lawyer and politician who served as Lord Mayor of Dublin.
3. Thomas Joseph Kenny (1846 - 1927), an Irish-American prelate of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Bishop of St. Augustine.
4. Arthur Kenny (1880 - 1952), an Irish-Canadian politician who served as the 12th Premier of Nova Scotia.
5. Patrick Kenny (1918 - 2019), an Irish hurler who played for the Dublin senior team and won three All-Ireland medals.

The surname Kenny has also been associated with various place names in Ireland, such as Kennydale in County Sligo and Kenny's Cross in County Mayo, further reflecting the historical roots of the name in the western region of the country.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kenny

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

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

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

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