Makenna
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Meaning
modern variant spelling of Mckenna
The story
Makenna is Mckenna opened with an a, the surname's contraction smoothed into a girl's name, and the couple files under the law our records keep confirming: Mckenna, the original spelling, runs bigger at about 44,500 and carries its own story here, and the two rise and settle together. Makenna's own wave was the turn of the millennium: about 3,700 in the 1990s, cresting at 14,000 in the 2000s, then 11,800 in the 2010s and 4,100 so far this decade. It goes to girls almost absolutely: about 33,700 to eight. The 2000s cohort is grown now, which is the couples' ledger's recurring lesson: a spelling that arrives as a variation graduates as somebody's name on a diploma. One sound, two doors in, and the record charting both.
How popular is Makenna around the world?
In the United States, 4,140 babies were named Makenna between 2020 and 2025.
Makenna is on the official records of the United States, South Australia and Canada.
United States
1 in 5,300
In the United States, 4,140 babies were named Makenna between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Makenna peaked in the 2000s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure. Makenna went to 1,117 US babies in 2015 and 495 in 2025, 44% 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 Makenna in 2017.
The count never rose above 4 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 9,600
In Canada, 38 girls named Makenna were born in 2024, the 772nd 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)
Argentina
last on record 2020
Makenna is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
England and Wales
last on record 2021
Makenna is not on the 2025 record for England and Wales, where spellings under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Puerto Rico, Ireland, New Zealand, Scotland 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 Makenna
Most people given the name Makenna in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Makenna deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Makenna 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 Makenna fits with your family’s names and surname.
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