Fun Facts About the Name Kia
- More than 7 thousand babies named Kia: U.S. records list 7,809 babies given the name Kia from 1880 through 2025. Even 196 boys received the name Kia - about 1 boy for every 39 girls.
What Does the Name Kia Mean?
Kia has more than one independent origin rather than a single root. In Persian, Kia (کیا) is chiefly a masculine given name understood to mean "king" or "ruler." It belongs to the vocabulary of Iranian kingship: the legendary Kianian line, celebrated in Ferdowsi's Shahnameh, is linked with the title kay, and kia is used in Persian for a person of high standing. The "king" sense is a customary interpretation of the name more than a precisely documented ancient etymology.
In Scandinavia, Kia is a feminine name, generally explained as a short form of a longer women's name such as Kristina or Katarina. In that use it has no separate meaning of its own; the meaning rests in the full name it shortens.
Separately, kia is a Maori particle meaning "be" or "let it be," familiar from the greeting kia ora. That is a grammatical word, not a personal name, and it is not the source of Kia as a given name.
Kia Name History & Origins
Persian Kia is tied to the language of kingship in Iranian tradition. The Kianian, the legendary dynasty of the Shahnameh, are named with the title kay (as in Kai Kobad and Kai Khosrow), and kia appears in Persian as a related term for a ruler or notable. The given name has been used in Iran and among Persian speakers, most often for boys, and it also serves as the first element of longer names.
The feminine name Kia developed in Scandinavia along a different path. Like many Scandinavian girls' names, it appears to have grown out of the practice of clipping a longer saint's name into a short everyday form, with Kristina and Katarina the parent names most often proposed. Kia is now met mainly as a girl's name. Firm documentation of when it was first used as an independent name is limited, so the short-form explanation remains the common account rather than a settled fact.
The Maori word kia is a separate item: a verbal particle used in phrases such as kia ora, with no connection to the given name. The name of the South Korean carmaker Kia Motors also looks similar but has a different origin; it is written with Sino-Korean characters meaning "to rise from Asia" and is a company name, not a source for the personal name.
How Popular is the Name Kia?
Kia recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1993. Its best rank was #634 in 1983.
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 | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #8,621 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2024 | #12,772 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #16,435 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2022 | #5,874 | 21 | 0.0013% |
| 2021 | #9,954 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2020 | #6,783 | 17 | 0.0011% |
| 2019 | #7,948 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2018 | #7,256 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2017 | #8,090 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #6,081 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2015 | #7,816 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2014 | #5,714 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2013 | #5,747 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2012 | #5,331 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2011 | #4,628 | 31 | 0.0018% |
| 2010 | #5,334 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2009 | #4,423 | 34 | 0.0019% |
| 2008 | #4,408 | 35 | 0.0019% |
| 2007 | #4,883 | 30 | 0.0016% |
| 2006 | #3,340 | 49 | 0.0026% |
| 2005 | #2,918 | 56 | 0.0030% |
| 2004 | #2,827 | 57 | 0.0031% |
| 2003 | #2,479 | 66 | 0.0036% |
| 2002 | #1,882 | 95 | 0.0053% |
| 2001 | #1,708 | 106 | 0.0059% |
| 2000 | #1,408 | 132 | 0.0073% |
| 1999 | #1,234 | 153 | 0.0086% |
| 1998 | #972 | 209 | 0.0118% |
| 1997 | #1,006 | 193 | 0.0111% |
| 1996 | #876 | 226 | 0.0129% |
| 1995 | #899 | 211 | 0.0120% |
| 1994 | #859 | 229 | 0.0128% |
| 1993 | #649 | 344 | 0.0190% |
| 1992 | #813 | 247 | 0.0134% |
| 1991 | #809 | 253 | 0.0135% |
| 1990 | #861 | 229 | 0.0121% |
| 1989 | #899 | 205 | 0.0111% |
| 1988 | #1,048 | 153 | 0.0086% |
| 1987 | #867 | 196 | 0.0113% |
| 1986 | #690 | 264 | 0.0154% |
| 1985 | #773 | 219 | 0.0127% |
| 1984 | #833 | 188 | 0.0112% |
| 1983 | #634 | 272 | 0.0163% |
| 1982 | #662 | 270 | 0.0159% |
| 1981 | #666 | 263 | 0.0158% |
| 1980 | #740 | 224 | 0.0135% |
| 1979 | #840 | 185 | 0.0115% |
| 1978 | #673 | 237 | 0.0155% |
| 1977 | #715 | 217 | 0.0142% |
| 1976 | #794 | 177 | 0.0121% |
| 1975 | #763 | 186 | 0.0128% |
| 1974 | #763 | 183 | 0.0125% |
| 1973 | #810 | 162 | 0.0111% |
| 1972 | #838 | 156 | 0.0103% |
| 1971 | #850 | 161 | 0.0097% |
| 1970 | #1,112 | 106 | 0.0061% |
| 1969 | #1,458 | 65 | 0.0039% |
| 1968 | #1,497 | 58 | 0.0035% |
| 1967 | #1,866 | 40 | 0.0024% |
| 1966 | #1,609 | 49 | 0.0029% |
| 1965 | #2,180 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 1964 | #2,384 | 27 | 0.0014% |
| 1963 | #3,252 | 16 | 0.0008% |
| 1962 | #3,089 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1961 | #2,894 | 19 | 0.0009% |
| 1960 | #4,959 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1959 | #3,173 | 15 | 0.0007% |
| 1957 | #6,564 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1956 | #6,423 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | #11,684 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2023 | #13,284 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2022 | #13,421 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2018 | #13,246 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2017 | #13,351 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2016 | #11,517 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2006 | #13,122 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 2005 | #12,490 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2003 | #11,925 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2002 | #10,106 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2001 | #7,983 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1999 | #6,843 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1998 | #10,532 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1997 | #5,490 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1996 | #6,845 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1995 | #6,720 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1994 | #6,712 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1993 | #4,592 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1990 | #7,669 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1989 | #4,414 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1988 | #5,475 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1987 | #7,604 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #5,120 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1985 | #6,190 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1983 | #5,222 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1979 | #4,646 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1977 | #4,401 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1975 | #5,925 | 5 | 0.0003% |
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.
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How the Name Kia Shapes Your Personality and Life?
EXTREMES in fortune, health and spirituality. You are very versatile, idealistic and intuitive. You either enjoy great success or suffer abject misery. The solution is service to others. Use your leadership abilities for humanity and not for self-glorification. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
Creative and outgoing, you are always looking for an opportunity to show your abilities, especially before audience. You are very flexible and like to feel appreciated. You are looking for chances to mix with others socially and to communicate your ideas. You like to talk and can easily relate to different cultures and concepts. The biggest challenge for you is uncertainty. Easily getting bored, you can move from one job to another, switch projects and lovers. The high creative force can lead you either to happiness or unhappiness. If you understand your goals, if you can make major decisions in life and follow it directly and straight up without worry and uncertainty, you are able to achieve great heights.
✦ Kia's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Kia's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.