Mckenna

Meaning of Mckenna

McKenna—pronounced muh-KEN-uh—is a modern borrowing from the Gaelic surname Mac Cionaoith, traditionally rendered “son of Cionaoith,” with etymologists sparring good-naturedly over whether Cionaoith means “born of fire” or “handsome one”; either way, the name carries a certain flicker of confidence that parents clearly find appealing. First appearing on U.S. birth charts in the 1970s and gathering steam through the Celtic-chic 1990s, McKenna has maintained a steady mid-field position ever since, hovering in the two-hundreds before beginning a gentle glide toward the three-hundreds in recent years—proof that, like a well-loved sweater, it’s worn often enough to feel familiar yet rarely enough to stay interesting. The name’s unisex surname-style structure gives it a brisk, contemporary snap, while the soft cadence of its vowels tempers that energy with approachability, making McKenna equally at home on a résumé, a soccer jersey, or a book jacket. In short, it’s a name that manages to be both down-to-earth and ever so slightly ablaze—no small feat for five modest syllables.

Pronunciation

American English

• Pronunced as muh-KEN-uh (/məˈkɛnə/)

• Mckenzie
• Mackenna
• Mackenzie
• Mikayla
• Makayla
• Mckenna
• Mckenzi