Cadence
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Meaning
rhythm, flow of sound; from Latin cadentia
The story
Cadence is Latin at its root, cadentia, the falling of sound into rhythm, a musician's term promoted directly into a girl's name. It is a genuine word-name of the melodic kind: not a virtue, not a flower, but a piece of music vocabulary, which places it beside Harmony, Melody, and Aria in the modern songbook of names. The US curve is unambiguous about when America noticed: essentially absent before the 1970s, a jump in the 2000s to a peak it held through the 2010s, easing in the 2020s as the wave settles. Kay and Kadie make easy short forms, and the Kaydence spelling family runs alongside. A name that means rhythm, ridden in on exactly one fashion beat. The musical term remains audible every time the name is spoken.
How popular is Cadence around the world?
In the United States, 2,439 babies were named Cadence between 2020 and 2025.
Cadence is on the official records of the United States, South Australia, Canada and England and Wales.
United States
1 in 8,900
In the United States, 2,439 babies were named Cadence between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Cadence peaked in the 2000s and the 2010s in nearly equal measure. Cadence went to 1,046 US babies in 2015 and 321 in 2025, 31% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
South Australia
1 in 9,2002017
In South Australia, 2 girls were registered as Cadence in 2017.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Canada
1 in 11,000
In Canada, 32 girls named Cadence were born in 2024, the 870th most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
England and Wales
1 in 120,000
In England and Wales, 5 girls named Cadence were born in 2025, ranked 4,201st among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Ireland
last on record 2016
Cadence is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
New Zealand
last on record 2018
Cadence is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Scotland
last on record 2019
Cadence is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Cadence
Most people given the name Cadence in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Cadence deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Cadence truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Cadence fits with your family’s names and surname.
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