Kennedy

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Kennedy

Gender: Masculine and Feminine
Language: English
Etymology:
Kennedy is an Anglicized Irish surname based on the Irish Gaelic Cinnéidigh. The name means “Ugly Head,” from “ceann” (head) and “éidigh” (ugly).

History:
Kennedy, a common Irish surname, was it would have originally been bestowed upon sons (very occasionally daughters) as either a first or a middle name in order to honor the Kennedy surname. For example, a woman named Mary Kennedy who married a man named John Smith, may name her son John Kennedy Smith, or merely Kennedy Smith. This pratice began in the 19th century.

Although Kennedy was a fairly common American surname (brought by Irish immigrants) it was rarely used as a first name. Most Kennedys were Irish, and most Irish were Roman Catholic. And at the time, most Catholics tended to give their children saints’ names, and honoring a surname was a mostly Protestant practice.

The name Kennedy was first used as a first name (in any great numbers) in 1963, in honor of assassinated American president John F. Kennedy.

It has recently become a hot and trendy first name for girls.

Pronunciation: ken-id-ee.

Alternates: Kennady, Kenedy.

Alternates (feminine): Kennedi, Kennedie.

Famous Bearers:
Places:
Kennedy Channel
Arctic Ocean.

Political Figures:
Kennedy A. Simmonds (m., 1936-)
Prime minister of St. Kitts and Nevis.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census, for males:
less than 0.004 % of males named Kennedy
less than 0.001 % of females named Kennedy

0.067 % surnamed Kennedy

Popularity of Kennedy, for males:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1959: N/A
1960: 723rd most popular. (John Fitzgerald Kennedy is elected president)
1961: N/A
1962: 827th most popular.
1963: 617th most popular. (President Kennedy is assassinated, becoming a martyr)
1964: 516th most popular. - Peak!
1965: 672nd most popular.
1966: 784th most popular.
1967: 908th most popular.
1968: 983rd most popular.
1969-1993: N/A
1994: 931st most popular.
1995: 861st most popular.
1996: 858th most popular.
1997: 816th most popular.
1998: 957th most popular.
1999: 914th most popular.
2000: 960th most popular.
2001: 861st most popular.
2002: 870th most popular.
2003: 970th most popular.
2004: 929th most popular.

Popularity of Kennedy, for females:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1993: N/A
1994: 542nd most popular.
1995: 237th most popular.
1996: 214th most popular.
1997: 191st most popular.
1998: 183rd most popular.
1999: 165th most popular.
2000: 141st most popular.
2001: 140th most popular.
2002: 138th most popular.
2003: 123rd most popular.
2004: 115th most popular.

Popularity of Kennedi, for females:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1998: N/A
1999: 812th most popular.
2000: 799th most popular.
2001: 741st most popular.
2002: 704th most popular.
2003: 640th most popular.
2004: 628th most popular.

Selected Sources:
The Penguin Dictionary of First Names, Pickering , 1999
A Dictionary of English Surnames by Reaney and Wilson, 1997.
American Surnames, Elsdon C. Smith, 1994

The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880