Kenji
Kenji is a boys' name of Japanese origin meaning “strong and vigorous second son; wise peace.” It ranked #944 in the United States in 2025. A Japanese given name commonly written as 健二 (strong second son) or 賢二 (wise second son) or 健司 (strong official).
how do you pronounce Kenji?
KEN-jee
Hear it spoken aloud with our AI pronunciation tool.
what does Kenji mean?
The name Kenji means “strong and vigorous second son; wise peace.” It comes from the Japanese language tradition.
A Japanese given name commonly written as 健二 (strong second son) or 賢二 (wise second son) or 健司 (strong official). It is a classic and widely used Japanese name that has gained some international recognition through Japanese culture exports.
where does the name Kenji come from?
No reference material was retrieved for Kenji. It is often glossed elsewhere as strong second son or wise peace depending on which kanji are used, but nothing found here confirms any specific character breakdown, so none is given.
the history of Kenji
Nothing further about its history or usage can be said in the absence of a source.
how popular is this name?
| Year | Rank |
|---|---|
| 2025 | #944 |
| 2024 | #856 |
| 2023 | #828 |
| 2022 | #754 |
| 2021 | #847 |
| 2020 | #913 |
Source: SSA National Baby Names Dataset
what are the nicknames and variants of Kenji?
Nicknames
who are famous people named Kenji?
- Kenji Mizoguchi (filmmaker)
- Kenji Watanabe (Pokémon designer)
what names go well with Kenji?
Sibling names that share Kenji's rhythm and register without echoing it too closely.
Last reviewed April 30, 2026 · Curated by HushName editorial
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