In 1979, the name Kai first appeared in the top 1000 boys names in the U.S. where it sat at 958th place.  Over the years, it has remained within the top 1000. The name has become increasingly popular. With a fairly steady incline over the past decade, Kai made it into the top 100 baby names for 2019, when it sat at No. 100. In 2020, it placed 93rd. For girls, it placed 794 in 2020.

Name Variations

For those considering the name Kai, you might also like some of the following variations:

CaiCaiusChi KalebKianKylerKyKylo

Similar Names

If you like the name Kai, you might appreciate some of these other short, strong names:

Ash (Old English)Beck (German; Hebrew)Bay (Latin)Jude (Hebrew)Kaz (Japanese)Kylo (American)Luca (Italian)Seb (Egyptian)Teo (Greek)Theo (Greek)Ty (American)Zale (Greek)

Other boy names starting with K:

Kace Kain KalebKarterKashKaylenKianKingstonKendallKentKylan

Other Hawaiian boy names:

Akamu (of the earth)Bane (long-awaited child)Kainalu (surf)Kaimana (beach)Kainoa (place)Kaleo (the sound)Keanu (the breeze)Koi (urge; implore)Kana (God has judged)Makani (wind)Iulio (youthful)

Suggested Sibling Names

Looking for some names that go well with Kai? Perhaps you’ll like some of these:

Aria (Hebrew) Arlo (Old English)Freya (Scandinavian) Lily (Greek)Kamilah (Arabic) Katie (Greek)Koa (Hawaiian)Leilani ( Hawaiin) Mei (Chinese)Micah (Hebrew)Milana (Russian)Milo (Latin) Nani (Hawaiin)Noah (Hebrew)River (Latin)Sienna (Italian)

Famous People Named Kai

Actress Jennifer Connelly named her son Kai in 1997. And, in 2008, Liev Schreiber and Naomi Watts gave their son Samuel the middle name Kai. There are some other notable people with the name Kai, including:

Kai Alexander, British actorKai Altair, American singer-songwriterKai Althoff, German multimedia artistKai Bird, American journalistKai Budde, German gamerKai Diekmann, German journalistKai Greene, American bodybuilderKai Wen Tan, American gymnast

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