Kadence
Masculine · “rhythm”
Kadence is given to both — 1,680 boys and 11,618 girls since 1880. See Kadence as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Kadence respells Cadence, and the Latin cadere behind it means to fall — because a musical phrase drops to its close.
How old is the name Kadence?
Kadence first appears in US birth records in 1995 — 30 years ago. The typical Kadence is a kid of about 9 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,700 people named Kadence are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kadence most popular?
Kadence peaked in 2019, reaching #1582 nationally. Today it ranks #2006, 424 places below that high. See the whole 2019 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From cadere to Kadence
The story of Kadence
Cadence entered American naming from the late 1990s among the music word-names, and the K respelling followed almost immediately. It is used for both sexes, more often feminine. Masculine Kadence appears in the American registers and is in current use.
Meaning
rhythm, a falling close
From the Italian cadenza and the Latin cadere, 'to fall'. In music a cadence is the chord sequence closing a phrase; the falling is literal. The same root gives cascade, decay, accident and chance. The word is ordinary and the etymology documented.
How the name formed
- cadere
- cadenza
- cadence
- Kadence
Related forms: Cadence · Kaydence · Cadenza
Pronouncing Kadence
KAY-dens
Two syllables, stress on the first. Kadence and Cadence are said identically.
Nicknames for Kadence
Moderate
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
- 1995
- Most boys named
- 2022106 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1582reached in 2019
- Change vs 2024
- −11.8%75 in 2025, from 85
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.
Kadence in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Cadence in English — spelling variant
- Kaydence in English — spelling variant
- Cadenza in Italian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Georgia, Texas, Florida.
Kadences among us
people named Kadence are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 22,774 born in 2025 was named Kadence
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Kadence
- #2006
- Kadence on the 2025 chart
- #777
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Kadence went to 75 boys in 2025, but Cadence is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 151, which makes it the 777th most-given boys’ name of the year — 1,229 places above the chart.
- Cadence76
- Kadence75
About 1 boy in 11,312 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 22,774 for Kadence 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 Sandor test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Kadence's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Sandor climbed just as high around 1970, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Sandor's path sketches the road Kadence is walking now.
Kadence 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 Kadence is headed
Kadence should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
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.
Kadence beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Kadence in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That cadence, cascade and chance share a root is a first-rate etymology.
- Kade is available as a short form with a real record.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- Cadence is the standard spelling of both the word and the name.
- In America it reads as more feminine than masculine.
- At least three spellings of the sound are in circulation.
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What they receive
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Kadence
Masculine · #2006 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Kadences are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,700 people named Kadence are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Kadence?
- Kadence is one of 2 recorded spellings. Cadence is the more common one — 76 births in 2025 against 75 for Kadence.
- How popular is the name Kadence in 2025?
- Kadence ranks #2006 among US boy names in 2025, with 75 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Kadence?
- About 1 in every 22,774 US boys born in 2025 was named Kadence — 75 in all.
- Will my child share the name Kadence with classmates?
- Kadence will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Kadence
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Esdras#2006 · Oaklee#2006 · Rogan#2006 · Brentley#2006 · Axell#2006 · Fenix#2006 · Edmond#2006 · Rayne#2006
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kadence? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Kadence and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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