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Ken
Ken (けん) is a Japanese name for boys. Its best-known spelling is 健, 健 healthy. It is popular today and has reached No. 8 in 3 different years between 1969 and 1981.
けん · けん · ケン
Ways to write Ken
The same sound can be written with different kanji, and each choice changes the meaning. These are the spellings that have appeared in Japan's yearly baby name rankings, most popular first.
健
健healthy, strong
Boy, best No. 8 (1969–2020)剣
剣sword
Boy, 8 notable people on WikidataRarer spellings
These spellings of Ken appear in Japanese name records but are uncommon. Each uses a standard reading of its kanji.
賢wiseBoy
Popularity in Japan
Where the most popular spelling of Ken has ranked among baby names each year. It reached No. 8 in 3 different years, most recently 1981.
Show the numbers
| Year | Boys |
|---|---|
| 2020 | No. 97 |
| 2019 | No. 72 |
| 2018 | No. 58 |
| 2017 | No. 82 |
| 2016 | No. 60 |
| 2012 | No. 72 |
| 2011 | No. 72 |
| 2010 | No. 24 |
| 1981 | No. 8 |
| 1979 | No. 9 |
| 1978 | No. 8 |
| 1969 | No. 8 |
Source: Meiji Yasuda Life Insurance yearly baby name survey. It covers the top 10 names each year from 1912 to 2003, and the top 100 names and top 50 readings from 2004.
Famous people named Ken
Ken Naganuma 長沼 健Japanese association football player and manager (1930–2008)
Takeshi Obata 小畑 健Japanese manga artist (born 1969)
Ken Sugimori 杉森 建Japanese video game designer, illustrator, manga artist, and director
Ken Akamatsu 赤松 健Japanese manga artist and politician
Ken Matsubara 松原 健Japanese association football player
Ken Kutaragi 健Japanese businessman
From Wikidata: notable Japanese people with this given name.