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Kenan

Kenan: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“possession”
Origin
Hebrew
Say it
KEE-nən · 2 syllables
Used for
Boys

Biblical Kenan is a form of Cainan/Qenan from Hebrew, traditionally interpreted as 'possession' or 'acquisition'. This spelling is also used in Turkish, where it has a separate history.

Hebrew namesTurkish namesClassic namesBiblical namesInternational names

How popular is Kenan?

202456.0 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 Kenan in 2024187

2024 rank#1,132 boys

Peak year2024

Total US babies since 18804,490

Kenan is rising: use over the last five years is 1.6× what it was a decade earlier.

Names like Kenan

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • 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
  • Levijoined, attached · Hebrew
  • DanielGod is my judge · Hebrew

Kenan questions

What does the name Kenan mean?

Kenan means "possession". It comes from Hebrew. Biblical Kenan is a form of Cainan/Qenan from Hebrew, traditionally interpreted as 'possession' or 'acquisition'. This spelling is also used in Turkish, where it has a separate history.

Is Kenan a boy or girl name?

Kenan is mainly a boy's name in US records (99% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Kenan?

187 US babies were named Kenan in 2024. Its peak year was 2024.

How do you pronounce Kenan?

Kenan is usually pronounced KEE-nən.

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.