Head to head · Girls' names
Fatima vs Kendall
#330 vs #328 in 2025 · both holding its place on the charts
Kendall is a whisker ahead (#328 vs #330 in 2025) and both are holding its place on the charts. The records will not split these two — sound, story and your own last name 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, Kendall leads 4 measures of 6; Fatima leads 2.
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
- 1910s: Fatima #4251, Kendall — — Fatima higher
- 1920s: Fatima #4662, Kendall #4570 — Kendall higher
- 1930s: Fatima #3574, Kendall #3434 — Kendall higher
- 1940s: Fatima #3001, Kendall #3169 — Fatima higher
- 1950s: Fatima #2050, Kendall #2672 — Fatima higher
- 1960s: Fatima #1575, Kendall #1167 — Kendall higher
- 1970s: Fatima #933, Kendall #1177 — Fatima higher
- 1980s: Fatima #726, Kendall #545 — Kendall higher
- 1990s: Fatima #557, Kendall #252 — Kendall higher
- 2000s: Fatima #245, Kendall #162 — Kendall higher
- 2010s: Fatima #310, Kendall #175 — Kendall higher
- 2020s: Fatima #344, Kendall #313 — Kendall higher
Kendall stood higher in 8 of 12 decades; Kendall has held the lead since the 1980s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Fatima | Kendall |
|---|---|---|
| 1910s | #4251 | — |
| 1920s | #4662 | #4570 |
| 1930s | #3574 | #3434 |
| 1940s | #3001 | #3169 |
| 1950s | #2050 | #2672 |
| 1960s | #1575 | #1167 |
| 1970s | #933 | #1177 |
| 1980s | #726 | #545 |
| 1990s | #557 | #252 |
| 2000s | #245 | #162 |
| 2010s | #310 | #175 |
| 2020s | #344 | #313 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
Around the world
Fatima
- England & Wales#76
- Canada#100
Kendall
Not charting outside the US.
National statistics offices, latest published year.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Fatima
one who weans, one who abstains
From the Arabic root f-ṭ-m, tied to the verb faṭama, 'to wean.' The connection to abstinence is part of the same root's range of sense.
Fāṭimah → Fatima → Fátima
How it traveled
The name is Arabic, and its fame rests on Fāṭimah, daughter of the Prophet Muhammad — among the most honored names in the Muslim world, and especially revered in Shia tradition. It spread with Arabic across North Africa, West Africa, Persia, Turkey and South Asia, taking a local shape in each place.
Kendall
valley of the River Kent
The main reading traces the name to Kendal in Cumbria, from the river name Kent plus dale, 'valley'. A second reading, also taken seriously by surname scholars, derives it from Welsh pen y ddol, 'head of the meadow or dale'. Both land on much the same picture: a name for someone from a particular valley.
River Kent → Kendal (town in Cumbria) → Kendall (English surname) → Kendall (given name)
How it traveled
Kendal sits where the River Kent runs down out of the Lake District fells, and it gave its name to the families who came from there — Kendall, Kendal, Kendell, spelled however the parish clerk heard it. The town was known across medieval England for its woolen cloth, the 'Kendal green' that Shakespeare put into the mouth of Falstaff in Henry IV.
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
Fatima
FAT-ih-mah
Stress falls on the first syllable in every major tradition. English speakers usually say FAT-ih-mah; Arabic and Portuguese speakers lengthen the first vowel closer to FAH-tee-mah. Both are correct, and a child will likely hear both.
- Fati — The most widespread affectionate short form, used across Arabic-, Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking families.
- Fatou — Standard short form in Senegal, Mali and the Gambia, where it also stands on its own as a full given name.
- Fatma — A full given name in its own right in Turkey and Egypt, and used elsewhere as a familiar form of Fatima.
- Tima — Informal, family-level; drops the first syllable rather than keeping it.
- Also Fifi.
Kendall
KEN-dul
Stress on the first syllable; the second is light, closer to -dul or -dl than a full -dall. The pronunciation is settled and is the same for boys and girls.
- Ken — The most obvious short form; also a long-established standalone given name for men, which is worth knowing before you lean on it.
- Kenny — Informal and affectionate; like Ken, it exists independently as a man's name and is common among older generations.
- Kendy — Family-level nickname, rarely used outside the household.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Fatima if you want…
- a name on the way upup 12 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itFatima runs 3 syllables, Kendall 2
- plenty of nickname options5 recorded short forms — Fati, Fatou and Fatma
- a name that charts abroad tooFatima is on the national lists of England & Wales and Canada
Choose Kendall if you want…
- a name holding steadyKendall is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesKendall is 2 syllables to Fatima's 3
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
Fatima
Strengths
- Recognized on several continents and in several major languages, so it needs no explanation in most of the world.
- Phonetic in English — people who have never seen it written can usually spell it after hearing it once.
- A long unbroken run in American records, without ever becoming a name found in every classroom.
To consider
- The English pronunciation opens with the sound of the word 'fat,' and school-age teasing along that line does happen. Families who prefer the FAH-tee-mah pronunciation often find it heads this off.
- The name carries strong and specific religious weight in both Islam and Catholicism. Many families choose it precisely for that; others should know that people will often draw a conclusion about the family's background from it.
- Close variants — Fatimah, Fatma, Fátima with the accent — are all in circulation, so expect occasional forms filled in with the wrong one.
Kendall
Strengths
- An unbroken presence on US birth records since the early twentieth century — familiar to every generation now living, without ever having been inescapable.
- Reads on sight for English speakers: two syllables, no silent letters, no pronunciation instructions needed.
- Works for a boy or a girl without alteration, as surname-names generally do.
To consider
- Kendal, Kendell and Kendyl all exist, so expect to spell it aloud now and then — though the double-L version is the one people default to.
- Most Kendalls today are girls. A boy will meet the occasional assumption in the other direction, especially on paperwork and class lists.
- The obvious nicknames, Ken and Kenny, are strongly established as men's names in their own right; some families simply skip them and use the full name, which carries fine on its own.
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 Fatima and Kendall 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 Fatima and Kendall?
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.
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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 that carry both names
Every list here names both Fatima and Kendall — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Fatima or Kendall — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Fatima or Kendall?
- Kendall, in 2025: Kendall ranked #328 with 932 babies; Fatima ranked #330 with 931 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Fatima or Kendall?
- Fatima. Over the last five years Fatima moved up 12 places; Kendall moved down 14 places.
- Which is the older name, Fatima or Kendall?
- Fatima entered the US charts in 1919; Kendall entered the US charts in 1929. On the American record, Fatima is the older name.
- How many people are named Fatima and Kendall?
- About 38,500 people named Fatima are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 65,500 people named Kendall are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Fatimas or Kendalls in the classroom?
- Fatima will almost certainly be the only one in school. Kendall will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025; international figures from national statistics agencies. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
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