Meaning & origin
How it developed
In English usage, Kem as a surname developed from កឹម.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1942. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Kem through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,033
- 680 boys · 353 girls
- Most popular year
- 1956
- 85 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 66% boys.
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 6 in 2005. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 65 in 1956. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,163 as a first name in 2020; 955 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Kem’s family of names
In English usage, Kem as a surname developed from the Khmer form កឹម.
The ring: across languages.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Kem, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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