Name Awesome

Koa

#269 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Warrior, courage; koa tree

Koa has been given to 8,548 babies in the U.S. since 1978. In 2025 it ranked #269 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2025, with 1,281 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 90% boys, 10% girls all-time.

Babies named Koa, 2025

1 in 2,590

Koa over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls
05001K1.5K18801900192019401960198020002020

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 Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.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 — Koa over time

In 2025, Koa went to 9% girls and 91% boys.

19782025

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.

Koa: meaning, origin, and history

Warrior, courage; koa tree

Hawaiian

What Koa means

Koa means “warrior, courage; koa tree”, associated with koa.

Origin, language, and formation

Koa is used in Hawaiian. Its origins include Hawaiian.

Pronunciation and spelling

In Hawaiian, Koa is pronounced /ˈko.a/.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 7,702 boys were recorded with the name Koa between 1978 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 1,281 in 2025; its best national rank was #269 in 2025.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #582 in 2020 to #269 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #1,158 in 2015 to #269 in 2025.

In the United States, 846 girls were recorded with the name Koa between 1979 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 136 in 2024; its best national rank was #1,566 in 2024.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #2,949 in 2020 to #1,588 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank rose, from #9,834 in 2015 to #1,588 in 2025.

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 Koa?

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

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 2,590
1,281 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only
1 in 1,330
0.08% of boys
Rank, 2025
#269
of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
1,795 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Koa sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

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 301%
Grade of 1004%
School of 50018%

Put another way: gather 1,795 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Koa. In a class of 30 the chance is 1%.

When Koas were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Koa was born before 2022 — so the typical Koa is around 3 today.

Median birth year
2022
About 3 years old
Biggest decade
2020s
71.5% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
98.3%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
7,702
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

2020s — 71.5% of all recorded uses (5,506).

Is Koa 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
+23
Places climbed
Rank vs 5 years ago
+313
Places climbed
Rank vs 10 years ago
+889
Places climbed
Births vs 10 years ago
7.91×
More babies than then
Share of its own peak
100.0%
Peak was 2025 (1,281)
Years since peak
Peaking now
At its all-time high
Year-to-year steadiness
Shifting
22.5% average annual change
Best rank ever
#269
2025

Where Koa is used — boys

Across 2016–2025, Koa was most concentrated in Hawaii — about 1 in 216 boys, against 1 in 2,475 across all states with data. It was least common in Maine (1 in 6,667).

15462 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Hawaii1 in 216
  2. 2Nevada1 in 1,205
  3. 3Utah1 in 1,235
  4. 4New Mexico1 in 1,408
  5. 5Arizona1 in 1,471
  6. 6Oregon1 in 1,538
  7. 7California1 in 1,587
  8. 8Delaware1 in 1,754

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.

Geographically, Koa is one of the more regionally concentrated names in the country — more concentrated than 100% of the names used widely enough to compare. See the most regional names

Where Koa is used — girls

Across 2016–2025, Koa was most concentrated in Louisiana — about 1 in 16,667 girls, against 1 in 29,339 across all states with data. It was least common in Illinois (1 in 100,000).

16 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Louisiana1 in 16,667
  2. 2North Carolina1 in 16,667
  3. 3California1 in 20,000
  4. 4Georgia1 in 20,000
  5. 5Ohio1 in 20,000
  6. 6Indiana1 in 25,000
  7. 7Alabama1 in 33,333
  8. 8Arizona1 in 33,333

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.

Koa around the world

Where Koa ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

  • England & Wales
    2004–2025
    #199
    in 2025
  • Scotland
    2014–2025
    #152
    in 2025
  • Northern Ireland
    2017–2025
    #126
    in 2025
  • Ireland
    2014–2025
    #286
    in 2025
  • France
    2020–2025
    #4,222
    in 2025
  • Canada
    2008–2024
    #431
    in 2024
  • South Australia
    2008–2013
    #389
    in 2013
  • New South Wales
    2021–2025
    #50
    in 2025

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics, National Records of Scotland, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, Central Statistics Office, Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques, Statistics Canada, Consumer and Business Services (South Australia) and NSW Registry of Births, Deaths & Marriages. ONS, NRS, NISRA data under Open Government Licence v3.0. CSO, CBS SA, NSW BDM data under CC BY 4.0. INSEE data under Licence Ouverte / Etalab 2.0. StatCan data under Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Koa by the numbers

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

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#269
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 313
Best rank ever
#269
2025
Peak year
2025
1,281 that year
First recorded
1978
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
7,702
Count in 2025
1,281

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#1,588
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 1,361
Best rank ever
#1,566
2024
Peak year
2024
136 that year
First recorded
1979
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
846
Count in 2025
132

Names similar to Koa

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

KoahKekoaKoalMakoaNakoaKoanKoastTekoaAkoaKaikoaNikoaTakoaJakoaKoaliiZakoaKoamaluKoaltonKanekoa

Names with a curve like Koa

Not spelling — timing. These names rose, peaked and faded in the same years as Koa, so they read as being from the same moment even when they look nothing alike.

BakerOnyxShepherdSaintJazielBanksZyaireWellsCallahanEithanColsonAziel

Sibling names for Koa

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 Koa

Top names of 2025, Koa's peak yearThe 2020s in fullOther names that peaked in 2025Boys' names starting with KHawaiian Boy NamesHawaiian NamesMāori Boy NamesMāori Girl NamesMāori Names