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Kawena

#16,087 in 2025UnisexGirls' nameBoys' name

The + glow

Kawena has been given to 196 babies in the U.S. since 1988. In 2025 it ranked #16,087 of 17,293 girls’ names in use. Its peak year was 2005, with 14 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 92% girls, 8% boys all-time.

Babies named Kawena, 2025

1 in 663,000

Kawena over time, 1880–2025

GirlsBoys
05101518801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Kawena over time

In 2025, Kawena went to 100% girls and 0% boys.

19882025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Kawena: meaning, origin, and history

The + glow

Hawaiian

What Kawena means

Kawena means “the + glow”, associated with ka and wena.

Origin, language, and formation

Kawena is used in Hawaiian. Its origins include Hawaiian.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include Kawenaʻulaokalaniahiʻiakaikapoliopelekawahineʻaihonua.

Pronunciation and spelling

In Hawaiian, Kawena is pronounced /kaˈwe.na/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 181 girls were recorded with the name Kawena between 1988 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 14 in 2005; its best national rank was #8,098 in 2005.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #10,686 in 2020 to #16,087 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank fell, from #13,723 in 2015 to #16,087 in 2025.

In the United States, 15 boys were recorded with the name Kawena between 1992 and 2017. Its highest annual count was 5 in 1992; its best national rank was #9,118 in 1992.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

How common is Kawena?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 663,000
5 of 3,315,165 births
Among girls only
1 in 321,000
<0.01% of girls
Rank, 2025
#16,087
of 17,293 girls’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
459,581 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Kawena sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Olivia (13,544)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 100Under 1%
School of 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 459,581 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Kawena. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Kawenas were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Kawena was born before 2013 — so the typical Kawena is around 12 today.

Median birth year
2013
About 12 years old
Biggest decade
2010s
32.6% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
81.2%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
181
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

2010s — 32.6% of all recorded uses (59).

Is Kawena rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
+368
Places climbed
Rank vs 5 years ago
−5,401
Places dropped
Rank vs 10 years ago
−2,364
Places dropped
Births vs 10 years ago
0.71×
Fewer babies than then
Share of its own peak
35.7%
Peak was 2005 (14)
Years since peak
20
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Volatile
28.8% average annual change
Best rank ever
#8,098
2005

Spellings of Kawena

Kawena is not the most common spelling — Karen is, with 83.7% against Kawena's 0.02%.

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Where Kawena is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Kawena was most concentrated in Hawaii — about 1 in 7,692 girls, against 1 in 7,450 across all states with data.

1313 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Hawaii1 in 7,692

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Kawena has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Where Kawena is used — boys

Across 1910–2025, Kawena was most concentrated in Hawaii — about 1 in 33,333 boys, against 1 in 37,754 across all states with data.

33 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Hawaii1 in 33,333

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Kawena has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Kawena by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#16,087
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Down 5,401
Best rank ever
#8,098
2005
Peak year
2005
14 that year
First recorded
1988
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
181
Count in 2025
5

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
—
Best rank ever
#9,118
1992
Peak year
1992
5 that year
First recorded
1992
Last recorded
2017
All-time count
15
Count in 2025
Under 5

Names similar to Kawena

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

KawsarKawehiKawtharCalenaKawaiiYalenaAveenaGalenaMylenaSolenaRelenaKylenaZalenaAlaenaNevenaHalenaElaenaZelenaAnalenaHellenaKyleenaJaylenaAdeenaEleena

Sibling names for Kawena

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Kawena

Top names of 2005, Kawena's peak yearThe 2000s in fullOther names that peaked in 2005Girls' names starting with K