Cadence
Feminine · “rhythm”
Cadence is given to both — 22,430 girls and 2,125 boys since 1880. See Cadence as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Cadence is an English word carried whole into a name: the rhythmic fall of a line of verse, the chord that closes a musical phrase, the count that keeps a marching column together. It came into English out of Latin by way of Italy and France in the later Middle Ages, and it has kept that same shape ever since. Said aloud it lands in two clean beats, KAY-dens, which is close to what the word itself describes.
How old is the name Cadence?
Cadence first appears in US birth records in 1974 — 51 years ago. The typical Cadence alive today was born around 2010, making them about 15 years old. About 22,500 people named Cadence are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Cadence most popular?
Cadence peaked in 2007, reaching #199 nationally. Today it ranks #1022, 823 places below that high. See the whole 2007 chart.
Cadence appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From cadere to Cadence
The story of Cadence
The root is the Latin verb cadere, to fall. Medieval Latin cadentia gave Italian cadenza and Old French cadence, and English took the word in the fifteenth century for the rise and fall of spoken verse. Musicians then narrowed it to the chord sequence that closes a phrase, and armies borrowed it for the count that keeps ranks in step. The use as a given name is a recent American development, part of the long habit of turning ordinary English nouns — Melody, Harmony, Lyric — into names for children.
Meaning
rhythm, measured flow; a musical closing phrase
From Latin cadentia, 'a falling', from cadere, 'to fall' — the falling of the voice at the end of a phrase.
How the name formed
- cadere
- cadentia
- cadenza
- cadence
- Cadence
Related forms: Cadenza · Cadence · Cadencia
Pronouncing Cadence
KAY-dens
Two syllables, stress on the first. The same way the ordinary English word is said, so almost no one needs it explained twice.
Nicknames for Cadence
High
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1974
- Most girls named
- 20071,707 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #199reached in 2007
- Change vs 2024
- +0.8%245 in 2025, from 243
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Cadence in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Cadenza in Italian — related form
- Cadence in French — same name
- Cadencia in Spanish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Cadences among us
people named Cadence are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 6,560 born in 2025 was named Cadence
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Cadence
- #1022
- Cadence on the 2025 chart
- #610
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Cadence went to 245 girls in 2025, but Kadence is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 374, which makes it the 610th most-given girls’ name of the year — 412 places above the chart.
- Cadence245
- Kadence129
About 1 girl in 4,298 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 6,560 for Cadence itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Dina test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Cadence's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Dina climbed just as high around 1969, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Dina's path sketches the road Cadence is walking now.
Cadence sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Cadence is headed
Cadence is easing off slowly — about 27% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Cadence beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Cadence in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- An everyday English word, so the pronunciation is clear the first time anyone reads it aloud.
- A documented word history in English reaching back to the fifteenth century, and to Latin behind that.
- Ready-made short forms — Cady, Cade, Caddie — that are already in real use rather than invented on the spot.
- Familiar enough to be recognized, uncommon enough that a classroom is unlikely to hold a second one.
- The spelling competes with Kadence, Kaydence and Cadance, so expect to spell it aloud now and then even though your version is the word's own spelling.
- It sits close to Caden, Kaden and Jayden, which are largely boys' names, so it is occasionally misheard over the phone or in a noisy room.
- Its rise and gentle step back are recent enough that the name reads as belonging to a particular stretch of years — most people carrying it now are still young.
- Word names invite comment: musicians and drill instructors alike will have something to say about it.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Cadence to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Cadence
Feminine · #1022 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Cadences are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 22,500 people named Cadence are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Cadence?
- Cadence is the most-used spelling in US records — 245 of the 374 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Kadence.
- How popular is the name Cadence in 2025?
- Cadence ranks #1022 among US girl names in 2025, with 245 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Cadence?
- About 1 in every 6,560 US girls born in 2025 was named Cadence — 245 in all.
- Will my child share the name Cadence with classmates?
- Cadence will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Cadence
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Yamileth#1022 · Maylee#1022 · Serafina#1022 · Spencer#1022 · Dana#1027 · Waverly#1027 · Beverly#1016 · Marjorie#1016
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Cadence? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Cadence and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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