Mckenna
Mckenna was the 410th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 758 babies. Its best year was 2002, when it ranked 177th with 1,795 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 161 places. More babies were named Mckenna in the 2000s than in any other decade.
Meaning son of Cionaodh (Kenneth) · Irish, Scottish Gaelic
Say it muh-KEN-uh /məˈkɛnə/
- Rank in 2025
- #410 girls, down 130 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 758girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20021,795 babies
- Total since 1880
- 44,491babies recorded
What does the name Mckenna mean?
Mckenna is a spelling of McKenna, an Irish and Scottish surname from Mac Cionaodha, "son of Cionaodh". Wiktionary notes that Cionaodh is usually anglicized as Kenneth; it goes back to the Old Irish royal name Cináed, which Wiktionary traces to a Pictish name of unknown meaning. As a girl's name it is a late-20th-century American use, from the surname.
Mac Cionaodha (Irish, “son of Cionaodh”)Cináed (Old Irish, “personal name (origin uncertain)”)
How sure is this? Probable. 'Son of Cionaodh' is clear; the meaning of Cionaodh/Cináed is not.
Related names: McKenna, Kenna, Kenneth.
See also: Irish names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Mckenna', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kenna', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kenneth', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
Nicknames for Mckenna
The usual nicknames for Mckenna are Kenna. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Mckenna in the last five years, 42 were named Kenna, against 17 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kenna · also for Makenna | Modern | #759 | 1,959 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Mckennas go by each one.
Mckenna popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 183 since 1991.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #410 | 758 |
| 2020 | #280 | 1,135 |
| 2010 | #228 | 1,378 |
| 2000 | #188 | 1,704 |
| 1990 | #1,195 | 143 |
| 1980 | — | — |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Mckenna, counting every spelling?
Mckenna is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #432 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #410 for Mckenna on its own. Together these spellings went to 758 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Mckenna | 758 | #410 | 4,637 |
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 Mckenna?
758 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Mckenna (0.21 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Mckenna 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 11 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Mckenna.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Mckenna?
About 43,900 people born in the US named Mckenna are alive today, with a median age of 19; half are between 11 and 25. That makes Mckenna mostly worn by children and young adults.
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.
Mckenna by state
How common Mckenna was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New Hampshire (3.9×), North Dakota (3.7×), Maine (3.5×), Massachusetts (2.4×), Connecticut (2.3×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in California, Texas, Nevada.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Mckenna: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Mckenna, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Mckenna · Sibling names for Mckenna
Questions about the name Mckenna
What does Mckenna mean?
Mckenna means “son of Cionaodh (Kenneth)” (Irish, Scottish Gaelic origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Mckenna?
Mckenna was the 410th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 758 babies. Its best year was 2002, when it ranked 177th with 1,795 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 161 places. More babies were named Mckenna in the 2000s than in any other decade.
Is Mckenna a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Mckenna in the US.
Where is Mckenna most popular?
In 2021–2025, Mckenna was most common in New Hampshire (2.22 per 1,000 girls), followed by North Dakota and Maine.