Head to head · Boys' names
Asa vs Kasen
#483 vs #483 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Asa and Kasen share the same spot on the 2025 charts (#483). The records cannot split them; sound and story will.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Asa leads 4 measures of 6; Kasen leads 0.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Asa #224, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1890s: Asa #280, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1900s: Asa #464, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1910s: Asa #583, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1920s: Asa #638, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1930s: Asa #772, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1940s: Asa #922, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1950s: Asa #1133, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1960s: Asa #1205, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1970s: Asa #1040, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1980s: Asa #769, Kasen — — Asa higher
- 1990s: Asa #797, Kasen #4210 — Asa higher
- 2000s: Asa #637, Kasen #1237 — Asa higher
- 2010s: Asa #531, Kasen #478 — Kasen higher
- 2020s: Asa #486, Kasen #514 — Asa higher
Asa stood higher in 14 of 15 decades; Asa took the 2020s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Asa | Kasen |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #224 | — |
| 1890s | #280 | — |
| 1900s | #464 | — |
| 1910s | #583 | — |
| 1920s | #638 | — |
| 1930s | #772 | — |
| 1940s | #922 | — |
| 1950s | #1133 | — |
| 1960s | #1205 | — |
| 1970s | #1040 | — |
| 1980s | #769 | — |
| 1990s | #797 | #4210 |
| 2000s | #637 | #1237 |
| 2010s | #531 | #478 |
| 2020s | #486 | #514 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Asa
healer, physician
The Hebrew name is read from a root meaning to heal. Worth knowing: several identical-looking names elsewhere have nothing to do with this one — Japanese Asa is written with characters for morning or hemp, and Scandinavian Åsa comes from Old Norse. Same three letters, separate roads.
Hebrew אָסָא (Asa) → Greek Ἀσά → Latin Asa → English Asa
How it traveled
The name begins in Hebrew, borne in the Bible by a king of Judah, and it passed into Greek and Latin scripture without being reshaped — a rare thing for a biblical name, most of which came out the other end sounding different. The Protestant Reformation put Old Testament names back into English mouths, and Asa was among those the Puritans favored; it traveled with them to colonial New England and settled into the naming stock of American families, particularly in the nineteenth century.
Kasen
Not established
No meaning has been established for Kasen. What is documented is where it sits: it appears in United States records only in recent decades, alongside the closely related spellings Cason, Casen and Kason, and within the broader American habit of writing familiar sounds with a K.
Our story of Kasen — where the record runs out
Some names arrive with a lineage; Kasen arrived with a sound. It shares its ending with Mason and Jason, its first beat with Casey and Kason, and its initial K with the whole run of American names that swapped a hard C for something a little brighter.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Asa
AY-suh
Two syllables. AY-suh is the settled English pronunciation for the biblical name. AH-suh is what you will hear for the unrelated Japanese and Scandinavian names spelled the same way, so an occasional correction comes with the territory.
- Ace — Informal, playground-level; also used on its own as a given name in the US.
Kasen
KAY-sen
Two syllables, stress on the first, rhyming with Jason and Mason. A less common reading gives the first syllable a short a, KASS-en, so it is worth saying it once for people who see it written before they hear it.
- Kase — The most natural short form, clipping the second syllable; used informally, and occasionally given on its own.
- Kay — Informal, from the first sound; more often heard within families than outside them.
- K.J. — Works only when the middle name begins with J; common pattern in American nickname-making.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Asa if you want…
- a name on the way upup 23 places on the charts in five years
- a name that stays wholeone recorded short form for Asa (Ace)
- a long American recordAsa was already in use when US records began in 1880
Choose Kasen if you want…
- a name holding steadyKasen is holding its place on the charts
- plenty of nickname options3 recorded short forms — Kase, Kay and K.J.
- a newer arrivalKasen entered the US charts in 1992
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Asa
Strengths
- Two syllables, four sounds, and no silent letters — once heard, it is almost always spelled right first time.
- A documented line running from Hebrew scripture through Greek and Latin into English without the name changing shape.
- Long American use rather than a fashion spike, so it sits comfortably on a child, an adult and an old man alike.
To consider
- Two live pronunciations exist — AY-suh in English, AH-suh in Japanese and Scandinavian names of the same spelling. Most people will guess the English one, but not all of them.
- Three letters make for a short target: expect it to be read as Asia or Ada now and then, and to get lost in autocorrect and search boxes.
- Elsewhere in the world the same spelling reads as a girl's name, which matters mainly for international forms, travel and email from abroad.
Kasen
Strengths
- Sounds instantly familiar to American ears because it rhymes with names everyone already knows, so no one has to be taught how to say it.
- Short, two syllables, stress on the first — easy to call across a yard and easy for a child to write early.
- Has stayed at a steady level on the record for a few decades rather than spiking once and disappearing.
To consider
- The spelling will need saying. Cason, Casen, Kason and Kasen are all in use, so expect to spell it at the pharmacy and on the phone for life.
- The spelling is uncommon but the sound is not — a Kasen may share a classroom with Mason, Jaxon or Kayden and hear his name half-turned toward more than once.
- No meaning has been established, so if a documented meaning matters to you, this name will not supply one.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Asa and Kasen in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Asa and Kasen?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap
More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists these names appear on
- Three-letter names: tiny and complete
- Palindrome names: the same in the mirror
- Victorian names ready for a second century
- all guides
Where Asa and Kasen each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Asa or Kasen — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Asa or Kasen?
- They tie in 2025: Asa ranked #483 with 622 babies; Kasen ranked #483 with 622 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Asa or Kasen?
- Asa. Over the last five years Asa moved up 23 places; Kasen moved down 7 places.
- Which is the older name, Asa or Kasen?
- Asa was already in use when US records began in 1880; Kasen entered the US charts in 1992. On the American record, Asa is the older name.
- How many people are named Asa and Kasen?
- About 17,000 people named Asa are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 11,500 people named Kasen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Asas or Kasens in the classroom?
- Asa will almost certainly be the only one in school. Kasen will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Asa, Kasen and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
Free to start · no account needed · everyone you invite votes in one tap