Kemari
Masculine
Kemari is given to both — 1,585 boys and 537 girls since 1880. See Kemari as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Kemari joins a Ke- front to the -mari ending, and it is also the name of a Japanese ball game played at court for a thousand years.
How old is the name Kemari?
Kemari first appears in US birth records in 1996 — 29 years ago. The typical Kemari is a kid of about 12 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,600 people named Kemari are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kemari most popular?
Kemari peaked in 2009, reaching #1594 nationally. Today it ranks #1942, 348 places below that high. See the whole 2009 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
Our story of Kemari
Our story of Kemari is a story of a coincidence worth knowing. In America the name belongs to the -ari family — Amari, Kamari, Jamari, Kemari — none of which descends from another, all of which share a shape and a decade. In Japan, kemari is a ball game the imperial court has played since the seventh century, in which the point is to keep the ball up rather than to win. The two are unrelated, and the second is a good thing to know anyway.
Meaningscholars disagree
Not established
No settled etymology as an American name. It belongs to the -ari family with Amari and Kamari. Separately, the Japanese kemari is a court football played since the seventh century, from keru, 'to kick', and mari, 'ball' — genuine but not the source of the American name.
Pronouncing Kemari
kuh-MAR-ee
Three syllables, stress in the middle. Japanese kemari is KEH-mah-ree with even beats.
Nicknames for Kemari
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
- 1996
- Most boys named
- 2009100 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1594reached in 2009
- Change vs 2024
- +1.3%79 in 2025, from 78
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.
Kemari in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Kamari in English — related form
- 蹴鞠 in Japanese — related form
- Amari in English — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Florida, Texas, North Carolina.
Kemaris among us
people named Kemari are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 21,621 born in 2025 was named Kemari
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Marvis test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Kemari's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Marvis climbed just as high around 1983, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Marvis's path sketches the road Kemari is walking now.
Kemari 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 Kemari is headed
Kemari 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.
Kemari beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Kemari in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Kem and Mari are two short forms, both with real use.
- Three syllables with a strong middle, a rhythm that carries unusually well.
- It belongs to a large and well-documented American naming family.
- There is no documented meaning for the American name.
- Kamari and Amari are close enough to cause constant confusion.
- The Japanese game is a coincidence rather than a source.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Kemari 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.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Kemari? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Kemari
Masculine · #1942 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Kemaris are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,600 people named Kemari are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kemari in 2025?
- Kemari ranks #1942 among US boy names in 2025, with 79 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Kemari?
- About 1 in every 21,621 US boys born in 2025 was named Kemari — 79 in all.
- Will my child share the name Kemari with classmates?
- Kemari will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Kemari
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Justus#1942 · Whit#1942 · Jasir#1942 · Journey#1942 · Maverik#1942 · Shaun#1942 · Shulem#1942 · Bowden#1942
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kemari? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Kemari 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
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle