Kemal
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- keh-MAHL
- Origin
- Arabic
- UK rank, 2025
- #3,747 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #12,003 for boys
Kemal is a boys' name of Arabic origin, meaning “perfection; maturity”. In 2025 it ranked 3,747th for boys in the UK (5 babies) and 12,003rd for boys in the US (5 babies).
What does Kemal mean?
Arabic: Turkish form of Kamal
“perfection; maturity”
Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, founder of the Turkish Republic, is the most famous bearer.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Kemal a girl's or a boy's name?
Kemal is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 5 boys in the UK and 5 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Kemal in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #3,747among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 5about 1 in 60,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 39% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 5 boys in the UK were named Kemal, making it the 3,747th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,359th. Its busiest year was 2017, with 17 boys.
It has been given to fewer boys each year for the last 3 years. 2025 had fewer boys named Kemal than any year since 2011.
Half of all the boys named Kemal in the UK since 1996 were born between 2002 and 2018. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier boys aren't counted.
Among boys in 2025, it was 3,656th in England and Wales.
Kemal in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | #3,747 |
| 2024 | 6 | #3,335 |
| 2023 | 8 | #2,691 |
| 2022 | 10 | #2,279 |
| 2021 | 8 | #2,619 |
| 2020 | 9 | #2,359 |
| 2019 | 12 | #1,974 |
| 2018 | 10 | #2,234 |
| 2017 | 17 | #1,563 |
| 2016 | 7 | #2,947 |
| 2015 | 8 | #2,614 |
| 2014 | 6 | #3,125 |
| 2013 | 7 | #2,792 |
| 2012 | 7 | #2,849 |
| 2011 | 3 | #4,837 |
| 2010 | 7 | #2,775 |
| 2009 | 5 | #3,395 |
| 2008 | 7 | #2,616 |
| 2007 | 7 | #2,554 |
| 2006 | 4 | #3,522 |
| 2005 | 11 | #1,701 |
| 2004 | 8 | #1,983 |
| 2003 | 7 | #2,054 |
| 2002 | 12 | #1,312 |
| 2001 | 7 | #1,833 |
| 2000 | 10 | #1,405 |
| 1999 | 7 | #1,749 |
| 1998 | 9 | #1,446 |
| 1997 | 6 | #1,853 |
| 1996 | 13 | #1,083 |
How popular is Kemal in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #12,003among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 5about 1 in 340,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Too rare to calltoo few babies to tell
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 5 boys in the US were named Kemal, making it the 12,003rd most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 8,062nd. Its busiest year was 2023, with 15 boys. It first appears in the records in 1965.
2025 had fewer boys named Kemal than any year since 2010.
Half of all the boys named Kemal in the US since 1880 were born between 1994 and 2017, the years shaded on the chart below.
Kemal in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 5 | #12,003 |
| 2024 | 7 | #9,888 |
| 2023 | 15 | #5,922 |
| 2022 | 13 | #6,473 |
| 2021 | 12 | #6,693 |
| 2020 | 9 | #8,062 |
| 2019 | 14 | #6,099 |
| 2018 | 14 | #6,032 |
| 2017 | 9 | #8,136 |
| 2016 | 8 | #8,811 |
| 2015 | 9 | #8,035 |
| 2014 | 11 | #7,043 |
| 2013 | 6 | #10,722 |
| 2012 | 6 | #10,763 |
| 2011 | 9 | #8,072 |
| 2010 | 5 | #12,224 |
| 2009 | 9 | #8,305 |
| 2008 | 12 | #6,758 |
| 2007 | 11 | #7,090 |
| 2006 | 11 | #6,899 |
| 2005 | 8 | #8,292 |
| 2004 | 7 | #8,921 |
| 2003 | 7 | #8,636 |
| 2002 | 8 | #7,636 |
| 2001 | 11 | #6,006 |
| 2000 | 9 | #6,832 |
| 1999 | 11 | #5,650 |
| 1998 | 6 | #8,472 |
| 1997 | 10 | #5,636 |
| 1996 | 0 | – |
| 1995 | 6 | #7,785 |
| 1994 | 6 | #7,764 |
| 1993 | 9 | #5,764 |
| 1992 | 5 | #8,426 |
| 1991 | 5 | #8,228 |
| 1990 | 7 | #6,408 |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 6 | #6,420 |
| 1987 | 0 | – |
| 1986 | 7 | #5,327 |
| 1985 | 6 | #5,780 |
| 1984 | 6 | #5,557 |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 0 | – |
| 1981 | 10 | #3,856 |
| 1980 | 5 | #6,248 |
| 1979 | 0 | – |
| 1978 | 0 | – |
| 1977 | 0 | – |
| 1976 | 0 | – |
| 1975 | 6 | #4,795 |
| 1974 | 0 | – |
| 1973 | 0 | – |
| 1972 | 6 | #4,438 |
| 1971 | 6 | #4,373 |
| 1970 | 0 | – |
| 1969 | 0 | – |
| 1968 | 0 | – |
| 1967 | 0 | – |
| 1966 | 0 | – |
| 1965 | 5 | #3,928 |
Names like Kemal
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Muhammad Khalil Hamza Ronan Brody Khalid Kayden Kian Finn Yahya Umar Bilal
Names related to Kemal
More Arabic names
Layla Mohammed Lyla Mohammad Zara Aaliyah Amir Amira Fatima Ali Zayn Aisha Omar Zahra Kairo Safa
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Kemal: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/kemal, updated 20 October 2026.