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$Title{Names for Boys:  K}
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Editors of Consumer Guide
Harder, Kelsey}
$Subject{Names Boys K}
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The Ultimate Baby Name Book


Names for Boys:  K


Kain, Kaine (see Kane)

Kalus (see Nicholas)

Kane               Gaelic "bright"; also, Latin "tribute."  Because this name
                   sounds like Cain, the first murderer in the Bible, it's not
                   surprising that it isn't often picked by new parents.
 Other spellings:  Cain, Kain, Kaine, Kayne

Kareem             Arabic "noble."  The royal connotations of this name
                   certainly suit Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the long-reigning
                   king of the basketball courts.
 Other spellings:  Karim, Karime

Karim, Karime (see Kareem)

Karl               German variation of Charles.  German-born political
                   scientist Karl Marx and his colleague Friedrich Engels
                   published The Communist Manifesto in 1848.  They promoted
                   the theory of dialectical materialism that predicted
                   conflict between the capitalist class and the working
                   class.  Marx saw an advanced stage of socialism, or
                   communism, replacing capitalism.
    Famous names:  Karl August Drews (baseball pitcher)
                   Karl Lagerfield (fashion designer)
                   Karl Malden (actor)
                   Karl Menninger (psychiatrist)
                   Karl Shapiro (poet)
      Variations:  Carl, Charlton

Karlik (see Charles)

Karlis (see Carl)

Karol (see Charles)

Karolek (see Carl, Charles)

Karolis (see Charles)

Karoly (see Carl)

Kaspar (see Casper)

Kayne (see Kane)

Keefe              Irish caomh, "handsome, gentle."  Driven from their
                   homeland by the Normans, the Keefes migrated to what is
                   now County Cork, Ireland, and are known as Pobal O'Keefe.
                   The name is extremely popular in County Cork and is fairly
                   common among people of Irish descent in the United States.
     Famous name:  Keefe Brasselle (actor)
      Variations:  Keighry, MacKeefry, MacKeighry

Keereel (see Cyril)

Keighry (see Keefe)

Keith              Scottish place name; origin and meaning unknown but may
                   come from Gaelic "the wind" or "the forest."  Among
                   Black-Americans, this was one of the top 50 names in the
                   mid-1980s.
    Famous names:  Keith Hernandez (baseball player)
                   Keith Richards (musician)

Kelcey (see Kelsey)

Kelemen (see Clement)

Kelsay (see Kelsey)

Kelsey             German "from the sea" or "dweller by the water"; also,
                   Norse "ship island" (referring to the shape of an island).
 Other spellings:  Kelcey, Kelsay, Kelsie

Kelsie (see Kelsey)

Ken                Form of Kenneth or Kent.
    Famous names:  Ken Kesey (writer)
                   Ken Rosewall (tennis player)
                   Ken Russell (film director)

Kenneth            Celtic Caioneach, "handsome" or, less likely, "chief."
                   In the ninth century, Kenneth McAlpine was the first king
                   to rule both the Picts and the Scots in the area now known
                   as Scotland.
    Famous names:  Sir Kenneth Clark (art critic)
                   Kenneth Clark (psychologist)
                   Kenneth Grahame (author)
       Nicknames:  Ken, Kenney, Kennie, Kenny

Kenney, Kennie (see Kenneth, Kent)

Kenny              Form of Kenneth or Kent.
     Famous name:  Kenny Rogers (singer)

Kent               Gaelic "chief" or "white."  This English place name is one
                   of the many short names that are currently popular in the
                   United States.
    Famous names:  Kent McCord (actor)
                   Kent Taylor (actor)
       Nicknames:  Ken, Kenney, Kennie, Kenny

Kerby (see Kirby)

Kerestel (see Christian)

Kester (see Christopher)

Keven (see Kevin)

Kevin              Irish Caomhghin, "gentle and loved."  The sixth-century St.
                   Kevin was known as a hermit and is one of the patron saints
                   of Dublin.  This beloved Irish name is very popular in the
                   United States today.
    Famous names:  Kevin Dobson (actor)
                   Kevin Kline (actor)
                   Kevin Ramsey (dancer)
  Other spelling:  Keven

Kharalambos (see Harold)

Kharald (see Gerald)

Khristian (see Christian)

Khristoforos (see Christopher)

Khrystiyiyan (see Christian)

Khrystofor (see Christopher)

Khvyados (see Frank)

Kiki (see Henry)

Kiko (see Henry)

Kilian (see Cecil)

Kim                Form of Kimball or Kimberly.  The best-known Kim is the
                   title character of Rudyard Kipling's turn-of-the-century
                   novel about an Irish boy growing up in India, whose full
                   name is Kimball O'Hara.
     Famous name:  Kim Warwick (tennis player)

King               Form of Kingsley.  This is usually a nickname.
    Famous names:  King Camp Gillette (inventor and manufacturer)
                   King Vidor (film director)

Kingsley           Old English "king's meadow."  This name is too overtly
                   "royal" to have wide appeal to Americans, who prefer less
                   obviously royal names, such as Sarah, Diana, and Andrew.
     Famous name:  Kingsley Amis (author)
      Variations:  King, Kinsey

Kinsey (see Kingsley)

Kirby              Old English "church village" from ciric [church] + by
                   [village].
     Famous name:  Kirby Puckett (baseball player)
  Other spelling:  Kerby

Kiril (see Cyril)

Kirk               Scottish form of Old English ciric, "church."
     Famous name:  Kirk Douglas (actor)
       Variation:  Church

Kit                Form of Christian or Christopher.
     Famous name:  Kit Carson (scout)

Klamencas (see Clarence)

Klaudiusz (see Claud)

Klaus (see Nicholas)

Klavdiya (see Claud)

Klavdu (see Claud)

Klemenis (see Clarence)

Klemens (see Clarence, Clement)

Klement (see Clarence, Clement)

Klemo (see Clement)

Klima (see Clement)

Klimek (see Clement)

Kliment (see Clement)

Klymentiy (see Clarence, Clement)

Knut               Danish "kind."  A Danish invader named Cnut, or Canute,
                   ruled England in the eleventh century.  He is the king who
                   tested his power by commanding the waves to be still.
                   Knute Rockne, a famous football coach of Notre Dame in his
                   own right, was made even more famous by Ronald Reagan's
                   movie portrayal of him.
     Famous name:  Knut Hamsun (novelist)
      Variations:  Canute, Cnut

Konrad             Old German Conrad, "bold counsel."
    Famous names:  Konrad Adenauer (chancellor of West Germany)
                   Konrad Lorenz (ethologist)
  Other spelling:  Conrad
       Nicknames:  Con, Conny, Kurt

Kris               Form of Christian or Christopher.  Kris Kringle is the
                   Bavarian equivalent of Santa Claus, or St. Nicholas.
                   Generally, the preferred spelling is Chris for boys, as
                   Kris is tending to be reserved for girls.
     Famous name:  Kris Kristofferson (singer)

Krishna            Hindi from Sanskrit "dark, black."  In Hindu teachings,
                   Krishna is an incarnation of Vishnu and a proponent of
                   selfless actions.  He is usually pictured playing a flute.
     Famous name:  Krishna Mennon (statesman)

Kriss (see Christopher)

Krista (see Christian)

Kristaps (see Christopher)

Kristian (see Christian)

Kristof (see Christopher)

Kristoffer (see Christopher)

Krists (see Christian)

Kritos (see Christopher)

Krsto (see Christian)

Krys (see Christian)

Kumar              Hindi "youth" from Sanskrit kamara, "young."  This name is
                   an immensely popular name in India, where it serves as both
                   a last name and a given name.  The central character in
                   Frank Scott's The Jewel and the Crown is named Kumar.
     Famous name:  Anil Kumar Chopra (educator)

Kurt               Form of Curtis or Konrad.
    Famous names:  Kurt Russell (actor)
                   Kurt Vonnegut (writer)
                   Kurt Weill (composer)

Kustas (see Gustave)

Kwame              Akan (Ghana) "born on Saturday."  Kwame Nkrumah led Ghana
                   to independence in 1957 and was the first prime minister of
                   the Gold Coast in western Africa.

Kyle               Irish "a chapel" or "a narrow stream of water."  The
                   popularity of Irish names has brought this name out of
                   obscurity.  Kyle used to be unknown outside of Ireland, but
                   today it is among the top-50 names for boys in the United
                   States.
    Famous names:  Kyle MacLachlan (actor)
                   Kyle Rote (football player)
  Other spelling:  Kile

Kyriakos (see Charles)

Kyril (see Cyril)

Kyrillos (see Cyril)

Kyros (see Cyrus)

Kyrylo (see Cyril)