Kerry
Kerry was the 2464th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 55 babies. Its best year was 1960, when it ranked 158th with 2,176 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 263 places. More babies were named Kerry in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Meaning County Kerry; Irish and English surnames · Irish, English
Say it KAIR-ee /ˈkɛɹi/
- Rank in 2025
- #2,464 boys, up 540 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 55boys
- Girls and boys
- 24% girls, 76% boys2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19602,176 babies
- Total since 1880
- 98,644babies recorded
What does the name Kerry mean?
Kerry is the name of a county in southwest Ireland, Irish Ciarraí 'people of Ciar', and is also a surname. Wiktionary gives the surname two sources: an English one from a personal name based on Old Norse Kári, and an Irish one from Ó Ciardha 'descendant of Ciardha', from ciar 'dark, black'. As a first name it was used for both boys and girls in the mid-20th century.
ciar (Irish, “dark, black”)Kári (Old Norse, “personal name”)
How sure is this? Probable. Several sources share the form.
Related names: Keri, Carey, Ciara.
See also: Irish names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kerry', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (our computation), SSA (public domain)
Kerry popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #5,642 | #2,464 | 22 | 55 |
| 2020 | #5,396 | #3,004 | 23 | 39 |
| 2010 | #4,803 | #2,084 | 30 | 65 |
| 2000 | #1,124 | #1,063 | 182 | 135 |
| 1990 | #446 | #483 | 556 | 402 |
| 1980 | #259 | #394 | 1,000 | 431 |
| 1970 | #176 | #243 | 1,831 | 967 |
| 1960 | #302 | #158 | 951 | 2,176 |
| 1950 | #365 | #197 | 478 | 1,062 |
| 1940 | #1,714 | #561 | 22 | 112 |
| 1930 | — | #1,628 | — | 21 |
| 1920 | #5,361 | — | 5 | — |
| 1910 | — | — | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — |
How popular is Kerry, counting every spelling?
Kerry is the most common spelling of a name family that had 98 boys in 2025 across its spellings. Together these spellings went to 98 boys in 2025.
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Kerry?
55 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kerry (0.02 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Kerry born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 152 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kerry.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kerry?
About 38,400 people born in the US named Kerry are alive today, with a median age of 61; half are between 49 and 68. That makes Kerry a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Kerry by state
How common Kerry was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Florida (2.2×). In 46 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Kerry: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kerry, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Kerry · Sibling names for Kerry
Questions about the name Kerry
What does Kerry mean?
Kerry means “County Kerry; Irish and English surnames” (Irish, English origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Kerry?
Kerry was the 2464th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 55 babies. Its best year was 1960, when it ranked 158th with 2,176 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 263 places. More babies were named Kerry in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Is Kerry a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, 24% girls, 76% boys given the name Kerry in the US.
Where is Kerry most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kerry was most common in Florida (0.06 per 1,000 boys), followed by Massachusetts and Indiana.