Fun Facts About the Name Keanu
- More than 8 thousand babies named Keanu: U.S. records list 8,916 babies given the name Keanu from 1880 through 2025. Even 225 girls received the name Keanu - about 1 girl for every 39 boys.
What Does the Name Keanu Mean?
Keanu is a Hawaiian name, formed from two Hawaiian words: ke, the common definite article meaning "the," and anu, meaning "cool" or "cold." Read literally, the phrase means "the coolness" or "the cold." The English gloss usually given, "cool breeze," is a customary rendering rather than a word-for-word translation. Anu is ordinary Hawaiian vocabulary for cold or chilliness, and it also appears in other Hawaiian names, so the name is transparent in meaning to Hawaiian speakers.
Keanu Name History & Origins
Hawaiian is a Polynesian language, and Hawaiian names are typically built from native words rather than borrowed from an outside tradition. Because ke and anu are everyday vocabulary, Keanu has read as a phrase to Hawaiian speakers throughout its use, and names of this word-based type are common in Hawaiian naming. Hawaiian was written down after English-speaking missionaries arrived in the 1820s, and from that period Hawaiians increasingly added Western given names and surnames alongside their own naming stock, while word-based Hawaiian names continued to be given.
Keanu is a masculine name used in Hawaii and among Hawaiian families elsewhere, and it is also chosen by families with no Hawaiian background. A widely known bearer is the actor Keanu Reeves, born in 1964, whose father is of Hawaiian descent. In English, the first syllable is commonly pronounced "kay," while the Hawaiian pronunciation of ke is closer to "keh."
How Popular is the Name Keanu?
Keanu recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2020. Its best rank was #514 in 2020.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | #12,898 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2020 | #16,314 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #14,679 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2017 | #17,159 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2006 | #18,612 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2005 | #15,458 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #15,102 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2003 | #17,049 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2002 | #16,788 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2001 | #11,518 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2000 | #5,585 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 1999 | #9,152 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1998 | #6,539 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1997 | #6,331 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1996 | #4,514 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 1995 | #3,534 | 31 | 0.0018% |
| 1994 | #6,876 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1993 | #6,831 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1992 | #7,265 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1991 | #6,092 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #649 | 427 | 0.0250% |
| 2024 | #632 | 442 | 0.0258% |
| 2023 | #537 | 551 | 0.0322% |
| 2022 | #591 | 483 | 0.0277% |
| 2021 | #532 | 553 | 0.0316% |
| 2020 | #514 | 556 | 0.0322% |
| 2019 | #630 | 429 | 0.0239% |
| 2018 | #802 | 282 | 0.0155% |
| 2017 | #890 | 242 | 0.0131% |
| 2016 | #975 | 211 | 0.0111% |
| 2015 | #1,025 | 198 | 0.0103% |
| 2014 | #1,260 | 142 | 0.0074% |
| 2013 | #1,487 | 110 | 0.0058% |
| 2012 | #1,193 | 151 | 0.0080% |
| 2011 | #1,123 | 163 | 0.0086% |
| 2010 | #1,146 | 162 | 0.0084% |
| 2009 | #1,127 | 164 | 0.0083% |
| 2008 | #1,114 | 165 | 0.0081% |
| 2007 | #1,117 | 164 | 0.0079% |
| 2006 | #1,035 | 177 | 0.0086% |
| 2005 | #975 | 179 | 0.0090% |
| 2004 | #869 | 202 | 0.0102% |
| 2003 | #839 | 208 | 0.0105% |
| 2002 | #807 | 212 | 0.0109% |
| 2001 | #677 | 269 | 0.0138% |
| 2000 | #771 | 216 | 0.0110% |
| 1999 | #840 | 180 | 0.0094% |
| 1998 | #973 | 142 | 0.0074% |
| 1997 | #770 | 194 | 0.0103% |
| 1996 | #620 | 280 | 0.0148% |
| 1995 | #537 | 356 | 0.0187% |
| 1994 | #756 | 195 | 0.0101% |
| 1993 | #1,110 | 102 | 0.0052% |
| 1992 | #1,071 | 105 | 0.0053% |
| 1991 | #1,344 | 71 | 0.0035% |
| 1990 | #6,138 | 8 | 0.0004% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
