Mckenna
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Meaning
surname, feminized "son of Kenneth"
The story
Mckenna is often simplified as son of Kenneth, but the surname's actual path is more specific. It is an Anglicized form of Irish and Scottish Mac Cionaodha, meaning son of Cionaodh. English scribes pulled unfamiliar Gaelic sounds toward spellings readers could manage, and Mckenna is one result. The surname is especially associated with County Monaghan and the border territory once known as Truagh, though a modern child with the first name does not automatically inherit that clan history. That distinction matters. A surname can carry a real place and lineage without turning every later bearer into a descendant. As a given name, Mckenna joined the large family of surnames that moved to the first-name position and came to be used especially for girls. Kenna offers a natural short form, while Makenna changes the opening. The most interesting story is already in the original: language crossed a border, changed clothes, and left enough of its old shape to trace the journey.
How popular is Mckenna around the world?
In the United States, 5,772 babies were named Mckenna between 2020 and 2025.
Mckenna is on the official records of the United States, Canada, South Australia and England and Wales.
United States
1 in 3,800
In the United States, 5,772 babies were named Mckenna between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Mckenna peaked in the 2000s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure. Mckenna went to 1,305 US babies in 2015 and 758 in 2025, 58% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 5,000
In Canada, 73 girls named Mckenna were born in 2024, the 407th 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)
South Australia
1 in 9,2002017
In South Australia, 2 girls were registered as Mckenna in 2017.
The count never rose above 2 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
England and Wales
1 in 120,000
In England and Wales, 5 girls named Mckenna 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 2022
Mckenna is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 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 2022
Mckenna 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
Mckenna is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
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 Mckenna
Most people given the name Mckenna 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 Mckenna deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Mckenna 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 Mckenna fits with your family’s names and surname.
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