Head to head · Boys' names
Kaison vs Kendrick
#539 vs #535 in 2025 · both stepping back from its peak
Kendrick is a whisker ahead (#535 vs #539 in 2025) and both are stepping back from its peak. 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, Kendrick leads 5 measures of 6; Kaison 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
- 1910s: Kaison —, Kendrick #1928 — Kendrick higher
- 1920s: Kaison —, Kendrick #2016 — Kendrick higher
- 1930s: Kaison —, Kendrick #2206 — Kendrick higher
- 1940s: Kaison —, Kendrick #1529 — Kendrick higher
- 1950s: Kaison —, Kendrick #1442 — Kendrick higher
- 1960s: Kaison —, Kendrick #956 — Kendrick higher
- 1970s: Kaison —, Kendrick #405 — Kendrick higher
- 1980s: Kaison #7905, Kendrick #355 — Kendrick higher
- 1990s: Kaison #6825, Kendrick #384 — Kendrick higher
- 2000s: Kaison #3483, Kendrick #511 — Kendrick higher
- 2010s: Kaison #895, Kendrick #417 — Kendrick higher
- 2020s: Kaison #497, Kendrick #468 — Kendrick higher
Kendrick stood higher in every recorded decade — 12 of 12.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Kaison | Kendrick |
|---|---|---|
| 1910s | — | #1928 |
| 1920s | — | #2016 |
| 1930s | — | #2206 |
| 1940s | — | #1529 |
| 1950s | — | #1442 |
| 1960s | — | #956 |
| 1970s | — | #405 |
| 1980s | #7905 | #355 |
| 1990s | #6825 | #384 |
| 2000s | #3483 | #511 |
| 2010s | #895 | #417 |
| 2020s | #497 | #468 |
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
Kaison
Not established
Kaison has no established meaning. It is a modern American formation, and what is documented is where and when it appears: on US birth records only, within living memory, alongside the closely related spellings Kason, Kayson and Cason. Any translation offered for it elsewhere is invention rather than etymology.
Our story of Kaison — where the record runs out
Some names come down a long road; Kaison was made here, and recently. You can hear the pieces it was made from — Kai, which stands on its own as a boy's name, and the -son ending that carried Mason, Jackson and Grayson through American nurseries.
Kendrick
'royal power' or 'chief hero', depending on which root
Two serious readings compete, because two separate old names produced the same surname. From Old English Cyneric — cyne 'royal' plus ric 'power'. From Welsh Cynwrig — cyn 'chief, foremost' plus a second element usually read as 'hero' or 'man'. A third, quite different route exists in Scotland, where Kendrick comes from Mac Eanraig, 'son of Henry', and carries no 'royal power' sense at all.
Cyneric → Cynwrig → Kenrick → Kendrick
How it traveled
Kendrick is one of those names that reached us backwards: it was a family name for centuries before anyone thought to give it to a baby as a first name. Behind the surname sit the Old English Cyneric and the Welsh Cynwrig, both compounds built from words for rulership and pre-eminence, worn down over the medieval period into Kenrick and then Kendrick with the intrusive d that English so often slips into such clusters.
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
Kaison
KAY-son
Two syllables, stress on the first, rhyming with Mason and Jason. Because Kai on its own is usually said KYE, a few people reach for KYE-son at first sight; one correction generally settles it.
- Kai — The most common short form, and a well-established given name in its own right in the US and elsewhere.
- Kase — Informal, family-and-friends use; overlaps with the separate names Case and Casey.
- Sonny — Drawn from the ending rather than the beginning; affectionate and used mostly by older relatives.
Kendrick
KEN-drik
Stress on the first syllable. Two syllables, no silent letters, and the same in British and American English. English speakers read it right on the first try.
- Ken — The standard short form, and a long-established given name in its own right; most strongly represented among older generations.
- Kenny — Informal and affectionate, also used as a full given name on its own.
- K — Initial-only nickname, common among American teenagers and in sports settings.
- Drick — Back-half clipping, informal and mostly used between friends.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Kaison if you want…
On the measures here, the records do not separate Kaison from Kendrick.
Choose Kendrick if you want…
- a name past its most crowded yearsKendrick is stepping back from its peak
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
Kaison
Strengths
- Reads correctly on first sight for American English speakers — the sound follows straight from the spelling.
- Rhymes with Mason, Jason and Grayson, so it lands as familiar even for someone hearing it for the first time.
- Comes with Kai built into it, a short form that already works as a full given name.
To consider
- Kason, Kayson, Cason and Kaeson all circulate, so this spelling will need saying aloud and confirming fairly often — on forms, at the pharmacy, in a new classroom.
- Individually rare, collectively not: a Kaison may well share a room with a Mason, a Jaxon and a Grayson, and the names can blur in a roll call even when no two are the same.
- The name's entire record is recent, so there are no older bearers to point to and no established figure attached to it. That also means it is unclaimed — its associations will be whatever this generation makes of them.
Kendrick
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds from parts English speakers already know — Ken and the -rick ending — so it rarely needs repeating.
- Comes with ready-made short forms, Ken and Kenny, both of which have stood alone as names for a very long time.
- A long unbroken record in American use, so it is familiar without being crowded — a Kendrick will likely be the only one in the class.
To consider
- It is closely tied in many people's minds to one very famous contemporary bearer, the rapper Kendrick Lamar. That association is likely to be the first thing said about the name for years to come — a plus for some families, a distraction for others.
- Kenrick, Kendric and Kendrix all exist, so expect the occasional dropped d or swapped ending in writing, even if the pronunciation never causes trouble.
- The natural short form, Ken, sits with an older generation and has its own separate baggage from the Barbie films. Kenny travels more easily with a child.
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 Kaison and Kendrick 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 Kaison and Kendrick?
Put both to the vote.
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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 these names appear on
- Eight-letter names with presence
- Quiet perennials: a century old, never popular
- Names ending in -ck
- all guides
Where Kaison and Kendrick each sit in the library — alternatives in the same style, ranked by the same records.
Kaison or Kendrick — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Kaison or Kendrick?
- Kendrick, in 2025: Kendrick ranked #535 with 559 babies; Kaison ranked #539 with 557 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Kaison or Kendrick?
- Neither is rising. Over the last five years Kaison moved down 85 places; Kendrick moved down 110 places.
- Which is the older name, Kaison or Kendrick?
- Kaison entered the US charts in 1989; Kendrick entered the US charts in 1912. On the American record, Kendrick is the older name.
- How many people are named Kaison and Kendrick?
- About 7,100 people named Kaison are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 32,000 people named Kendrick are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Kaisons or Kendricks in the classroom?
- Kaison will almost certainly be the only one in school. Kendrick 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
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