Kem
Masculine
Kem is given to both — 680 boys and 353 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Kem is three letters with at least three possible parents, held in the record mostly for sons, with a real share of daughters. English has a small set of words that survive only in the negative, and one of them is sitting next to this name.
How old is the name Kem?
Kem first appears in US birth records in 1942 — 83 years ago. The typical Kem alive today was born around 1959, making them about 66 years old. About 500 people named Kem are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kem most popular?
Kem peaked in 1956, reaching #924 nationally. See the whole 1956 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Kem
English has a handful of words that exist only in the negative, and unkempt is the clearest. Kempt is a real past participle of an obsolete verb meaning to comb, and it describes hair that has been attended to; almost nobody uses it, while unkempt is in daily service. The same pattern gives us disgruntled without gruntled, inept without ept, unwieldy without wieldy, uncouth without couth and disheveled without sheveled. Some of the positives did exist and fell out; others never did, because the negative was borrowed whole. Writers have been making the joke about being gruntled for a century, which keeps the pattern visible. The verb behind kempt is related to the noun comb and has been in the language since Old English.
Meaningnot established
Not established
It may be a set of initials, a clipping of Kenneth or Kemper or a Turkish name, or a build from the sound. Three letters carry no information about which, and the record holds the name for children of both sexes.
Pronouncing Kem
KEM
One syllable. Three letters, no ambiguity, and nothing that needs explaining to an English speaker.
Nicknames for Kem
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
- 1942
- Most boys named
- 195665 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #924reached in 1956
- Change vs 1994
- +20.0%6 in 2005, from 5
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.
Kems among us
people named Kem are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Kem sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Three letters fit any field on any form and cannot be misspelled.
- It works for a child of either sex, which the record confirms.
- One syllable is quick, clear and hard to mishear.
- Ken and Kim will both be heard for it in noisy rooms.
- It reads as an abbreviation, and people will ask what it stands for.
- Nothing records its origin, so the meaning question has no answer.
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Kem
Masculine
Frequently asked
- How many Kems are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Kem are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kem in 2025?
- Kem is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 boy names.
- Will my child share the name Kem with classmates?
- Kem will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More K names
The most-given names starting with K, all years combined.
Kenneth#294 · Kevin#221 · Kyle#508 · Keith#800 · Karl#1585 · Kaleb#295 · Kurt#2258 · Kelly#1867
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kem? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Kem and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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