Kennedy Name Meaning

While her meaning isn’t the most flattering, Kennedy is a delightful Irish name with a rich history. She’s a surname name with presidential appeal, a perfect fit among today’s modern monikers.

Kennedy is best known in the States as the surname of President John F. Kennedy and the rest of the Kennedy dynasty, a political family that has appeared in the White House, Senate, and Congress for decades. A surprising trend in baby names, presidential surnames are quite the style with McKinley, Reagan, and Madison also appearing on the charts. Kennedy is a standout choice among them, an updated version of yesterday’s Kendra and Kendall.

Kennedy is also a unisex name, a common choice in today’s top girl names. She’s got an entirely different vibe than Avery or Harper, a unique option for the modern parent. In addition, her familiarity in the States makes for little spelling or pronunciation issues, though she can also appear as Kennedi.

Perhaps the political know-how of the name will rub off on a little Kennedy, instilling a sense of passion and drive. She’ll have a natural ability to lead and to inspire, working her people-savvy ways to win over opponents. Similar names include Waverly, Everly, and Kinsley.

Infographic of Kennedy name meaning, which is From the Irish surname O Cinneidigh, Kennedy means helmeted head.
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Kennedy Name Popularity

How popular is the name Kennedy? Here’s everything we know.

Year Rank # Births % Births
1910 0 0%
1911 0 0%
1912 0 0%
1913 0 0%
1914 0 0%
1915 0 0%
1916 0 0%
1917 0 0%
1918 0 0%
1919 0 0%
1920 0 0%
1921 0 0%
1922 0 0%
1923 0 0%
1924 0 0%
1925 0 0%
1926 0 0%
1927 0 0%
1928 0 0%
1929 0 0%
1930 0 0%
1931 0 0%
1932 0 0%
1933 0 0%
1934 0 0%
1935 0 0%
1936 0 0%
1937 0 0%
1938 0 0%
1939 0 0%
1940 0 0%
1941 0 0%
1942 0 0%
1943 0 0%
1944 0 0%
1945 0 0%
1946 0 0%
1947 0 0%
1948 0 0%
1949 0 0%
1950 0 0%
1951 0 0%
1952 0 0%
1953 0 0%
1954 0 0%
1955 0 0%
1956 0 0%
1957 0 0%
1958 0 0%
1959 0 0%
1960 0 0%
1961 0 0%
1962 0 0%
1963 0 0%
1964 0 0%
1965 0 0%
1966 0 0%
1967 0 0%
1968 0 0%
1969 0 0%
1970 0 0%
1971 0 0%
1972 0 0%
1973 0 0%
1974 0 0%
1975 0 0%
1976 0 0%
1977 0 0%
1978 0 0%
1979 0 0%
1980 0 0%
1981 0 0%
1982 0 0%
1983 0 0%
1984 0 0%
1985 0 0%
1986 0 0%
1987 0 0%
1988 0 0%
1989 0 0%
1990 2,585 13 0.0008%
1991 3,853 5 0.0003%
1992 2,563 14 0.0009%
1993 1,387 70 0.0045%
1994 527 424 0.0276%
1995 229 1,215 0.0806%
1996 208 1,398 0.0934%
1997 186 1,597 0.108%
1998 182 1,643 0.1098%
1999 166 1,869 0.1248%
2000 139 2,374 0.1554%
2001 138 2,395 0.159%
2002 137 2,494 0.1664%
2003 122 2,769 0.182%
2004 117 2,873 0.1885%
2005 118 2,813 0.184%
2006 115 2,892 0.1847%
2007 110 3,041 0.1927%
2008 115 2,938 0.1901%
2009 115 2,851 0.1907%
2010 111 2,824 0.196%
2011 91 3,236 0.2271%
2012 84 3,380 0.2372%
2013 64 3,954 0.2777%
2014 54 4,488 0.308%
2015 57 4,517 0.3104%
2016 59 4,314 0.2992%
2017 58 4,129 0.2958%
2018 59 3,915 0.285%
2019 68 3,661 0.2704%
2020 73 3,260 0.2561%
2021 67 3,246 0.2655%
2022 74 3,052 0.2313%

Alaska (AK)

Alabama (AL)

Arkansas (AR)

Arizona (AZ)

California (CA)

Colorado (CO)

Connecticut (CT)

District of Columbia (DC)

Delaware (DE)

Florida (FL)

Georgia (GA)

Hawaii (HI)

Iowa (IA)

Idaho (ID)

Illinois (IL)

Indiana (IN)

Kansas (KS)

Kentucky (KY)

Louisiana (LA)

Massachusetts (MA)

Maryland (MD)

Maine (ME)

Michigan (MI)

Minnesota (MN)

Missouri (MO)

Mississippi (MS)

Montana (MT)

North Carolina (NC)

North Dakota (ND)

Nebraska (NE)

New Hampshire (NH)

New Jersey (NJ)

New Mexico (NM)

Nevada (NV)

New York (NY)

Ohio (OH)

Oklahoma (OK)

Oregon (OR)

Pennsylvania (PA)

Rhode Island (RI)

South Carolina (SC)

South Dakota (SD)

Tennessee (TN)

Texas (TX)

Utah (UT)

Virginia (VA)

Vermont (VT)

Washington (WA)

Wisconsin (WI)

West Virginia (WV)

Wyoming (WY)

Data via SSA.gov.


Names Like Kennedy

If you like Kennedy, you’ll love these other names like Kennedy.


What names are diminutives of Kennedy?

A diminutive is a name that’s like Kennedy sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Kennedy, but shorter.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Kenzy

The fair one

Scottish

Kinnsey

King's victory

English

Kinsey

King's victory

English


What names are variants of Kennedy?

Mix it up with these names that are a variation of the name Kennedy.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Kennedi

Unknown

Scottish

Kennedie

What names sound like Kennedy?

If you like how Kennedy sounds, you might also like these names that sound like Kennedy.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Kendall

The Kent river valley

English

Kendra

Greatest champion

Welsh

Kendyl

The Kent river valley

English

Kenna

Greatest champion

Welsh

Kenzie

Son of Coinneach

Scottish

McKenna

Son of Cionaodh

Gaelic


What names are similar to Kennedy?

Find a name that’s like Kennedy, but just a little bit different.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Addison

Son of Adam

English

Avery

Elf counsel

English

Brielle

God is my strength

French

Harper

Harp Player

English

Jemma

Form of Gemma

English

Jocelyn

Member of the Gauts

German

Kinsley

King’s clearing

English

Mackenzie

Son of Coinneach

Scottish

Madison

Son of Maud

English

Rylee

Rye clearing

Irish


Lists With Kennedy

Find inspiration in these baby girl name lists featuring the name Kennedy.


Siblings of Kennedy

Mamas with kids named Kennedy also have kids with these names.

Name Meaning Origin Popularity Other Gender
Johan

God is gracious

Hebrew

McClain

Scottish

Peyton

From Pacca's town

English

John

God is gracious

Hebrew

Lane

Pathway

English

Kinleigh

Kings meadow.

English

Karleigh

Free man

Latin

Katherine

Pure

Greek

Autumn

Season of harvest

English

Addi

Noble; noble kind

German

Jackson

Son of Jack

English

16 Comments

  1. I liked how it sounded with our last name

  2. We both loved this name for multiple reasons. It has Gaelic / Irish origin so honors my heritage. It also is unique and we didn’t want a very common name.

  3. My name is Kennedy, I love that I grew up with attitude and had a built in attitude name. I actually was named after my father, Kenneth.

  4. Last name.

  5. Family name of Kenneth, so decided on Kennedy for girl

    • I am named after my grandfather Kenneth my name is Kennedy

  6. Both my husband and I were talking about baby names one night, and we both loved the name Kennedy! After we found out we were having a girl, it was an easy decision!

  7. Kennedy Noel was named after her great grandmother and her momma.

    We picked out the name Kennedy because I was really close with my grandma.

    She is a very happy girl and her name fits her perfectly.

  8. I chose Kennedy for my daughter because its strong also Kennedy was the name of the best president! But for a girl its conservative and beautiful to me .

  9. We decided we wanted something elegant and how can you get any more regal than the Kennedys

  10. I wanted a strong unisex name. I landed on this one – because when I think of the “Kennedy’s” I think of what a great time in history and President he was. Most everyone loved the Kennedy’s.

  11. It was the only girl name hubby and I could decide on, it also goes well with Cox. Kennedy is a happy baby and loves nursing!

    • Thats crazy, i mamed my daughter the same, just with different spelling, and she has the same last name.I loved this name as well and we ended up naming our daughter Kennedi Grace Cox.

  12. I let husband choose our daughter’s first name since I picked her middle name, which was a tribute to my late father. He wanted a name with Irish origins and now we have our Kennedy Rae:)

  13. My dad passed away while I was pregnant with Kennedy. His name was Kenneth, so I thought Kennedy was a nice and close female version of his name, to honor his memory!

  14. We chose Kennedy for a few reasons. The first two reasons being we’re irish and from Massachusetts. The last being(obviously) for my love of the Kennedy family, especially John and Jackie. Timeless, STRONG, classy. I’m a fan of names that aren’t popular or basic, so the fact that I haven’t seen or heard many girls with this name, made this pick a no brainer for us.


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