Unisex name · since 1951

Kendal

9,123 babies named Kendal in U.S. Social Security records since 1951, with the highest year being 2004. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

#1,779 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#3,264 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
9,123
born since 1951
2000s
peak decade

9,123 babies have been named Kendal since 1951, making it today's #3264 unisex name.

Kendal has 9,123 recorded births among girls since 1951, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, ranked #3264 as of the latest data, more common than 81% of girls, busiest in the 2000s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1951 to 2025.

  • #1,779 of 72,339 all-time among girls
  • #3,264 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
  • 9,123 born since 1951
  • 2000s peak decade

Data updated Aug 2026

The verdict

According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Kendal ranks #1,779 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #3,264 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 9,123 born since 1951, peaking in the 2000s.

#1,779 of 72,339
all-time among girls
#3,264 of 17,297
2025 SSA year
9,123
born since 1951
2000s
peak decade
0%100%Median name50%81.1%
Kendal vs. every other girls name in current SSA rankings
Upper archive tier
All-time archive position

Kendal's 9,123 recorded births place it above 97.54% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.

38 jurisdictions
State-record footprint

38 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Texas.

How Kendal compares

9,123 Top 10% higher than 90% of 17,297 names currently given to girls

Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.

Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data

How the numbers stack up

Kendal's all-time total is 24x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.

Metric Kendal Median girls name (Kyann) #1 girls name (Olivia)
All-time total births 9,123 376 567,345
Peak-year births 565 21 19,840

Kendal's usage pattern, beyond the headline number

Divide Kendal's SSA record in two at 1989 and the more recent half accounts for 86% of all births, the earlier half the remaining 14%, consistent with a name still gaining ground rather than fading. Its calmest year was 1951, with only 5 births recorded -- set against the 2004 peak of 565, that's the full swing in one name's fortunes.

Kendal popularity over time - girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1951–2025

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (2004)
565
Annual births at peak, across 75 years of records
0200400600 195119621972198219922002201220222025 48

Kendal popularity over time - boys

4,677 total births recorded since 1915 (Kendal as boys' name)

Unisex variant - 4,677 births
050100150 191519411954196719801993200620192025 12

Kendal by decade

2000s is the heaviest window (3,415 births, 37% of the file).

2000s was Kendal's strongest decade.

3,415 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 37% of all-time use.

Kendal births by decade

Total births in each ten-year window

births

What this shows Peak: 2000s at 3,415 births (37% of all-time use).

Source U.S. Social Security Administration · Baby Names As of August 2026

How Kendal compares to similarly-sized names

Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Kendal's total volume

Kendal vs 15 similarly-sized girls names Scatter plot of 16 data points. 0%2%4%6%8%10% 050100150200 New & already peakedOld name, single-era peakNew & still diversifyingLong history, steady all along Years in SSA records % of total births in the single peak year -120, 3.4%-72, 4.2%-123, 1.5%-142, 3.5%-80, 3.4%-55, 4.7%-146, 2.6%-63, 2.8%-47, 5.6%-111, 3.2%-81, 4.4%-69, 7.9%-44, 5.9%-54, 3.7%-133, 3.4%Kendal-75, 6.2%Kendal
Kendal vs 15 similarly-sized girls names

Kendal by state

Where Kendal concentrates geographically, total births since 1951

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Kendal
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Texas
767 8.4%
#2 California
651 7.1%
#3 Ohio
474 5.2%
#4 Florida
423 4.6%
#5 Michigan
362 4.0%
#6 Pennsylvania
310 3.4%
#7 North Carolina
305 3.3%
#8 Georgia
265 2.9%
Texas share of Kendal's total US births 8.4%
Even split

767 of 9,123 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 38 reporting states.

Kendal appears in 38 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Kendal?
Since 1951, Social Security records show 9,123 babies named Kendal. Across the full SSA archive it ranks #1,779 of 72,339 girls' names by total births. In 2025, it holds #3,264 of 17,297 among girls. Its busiest year on record was 2004, with 565 births.
Where does Kendal sit in the SSA name archive?
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Kendal ranks #1,779 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #3,264 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. All-time ordinal matches browse popularity (total births DESC); the current ordinal uses the 2025 SSA file. See /methodology#corpus-placement.
When was Kendal most popular?
Kendal was most popular in the 2000s decade with 3,415 total births. The single peak year was 2004.
Where is Kendal most popular?
The top states for the name Kendal are Texas (767 births), California (651 births), Ohio (474 births).
Is Kendal a unisex name?
Yes, Kendal is used for both boys and girls. As a girl's name it has 9,123 births, and as a boy's name it has 4,677 births.
How long has the name Kendal been used?
The SSA has tracked Kendal since 1951 -- 75 years through the most recent 2025 data.
What names are similar to Kendal?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Kendra, Kennedy, Kendall, Kenya, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

What to do with Kendal's data

  • Kendal's decade-level peak was the 2000s (3,415 total births); usage has since declined to 355 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
  • Texas records the most Kendals (767 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Texas names

Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.

Keep exploring Kendal

Nearby Names Like Kendal

Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Kendal

Names with a similar popularity rank to Kendal

Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span

Two nationwide peer axes for Kendal: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.

Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.

Data Sources

Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1951–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).

Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Kendal draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.