NameRealm
Cain

Cain: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“acquired, possessed”
Origin
Hebrew
Say it
KAYN · 1 syllable
Used for
Boys

From Hebrew Qayin, explained in Genesis with a wordplay on 'acquired.' In the Bible, Cain is the eldest son of Adam and Eve.

Hebrew namesEnglish namesBiblical namesClassic names

How popular is Cain?

202469.0 per million US babies
1880192019602000
Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Babies named Cain in 2024230

2024 rank#975 boys

Peak year2014

Total US babies since 18807,441

Cain has been fairly stable over the last fifteen years.

Names like Cain

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • Kainevariant of Cain · Hebrew
  • Kainacquired; spear · Hebrew
  • Noahrest; comfort · Hebrew
  • Jamessupplanter · Hebrew
  • Elijahmy God is Yahweh · Hebrew
  • JohnYahweh is gracious · Hebrew
  • Michaelwho is like God? · Hebrew
  • Benjaminson of the right hand · Hebrew

Cain questions

What does the name Cain mean?

Cain means "acquired, possessed". It comes from Hebrew. From Hebrew Qayin, explained in Genesis with a wordplay on 'acquired.' In the Bible, Cain is the eldest son of Adam and Eve.

Is Cain a boy or girl name?

Cain is mainly a boy's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Cain?

230 US babies were named Cain in 2024. Its peak year was 2014.

How do you pronounce Cain?

Cain is usually pronounced KAYN.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.