At a glance
- In short
- Kash is a modern spelling of the English surname Cash, from an Old French word for box.
- U.S. rank 2025
- #286 of boy names
- Babies in 2025
- 1,183 (0.064% of boys)
- Trend
- Slipping #255 in 2020 to #286 in 2025
- Peak
- #240 in 2021
- First recorded
- 1916
Meaning of Kash
Kash is a modern spelling of Cash, an English surname that name dictionaries trace to Old French casse, a box or chest. It began as an occupational name for a maker of boxes. It also shares its sound with the English word cash, and it can serve as a short form of longer names such as Kashyap, from Sanskrit. Kash is pronounced like the word cash (/kæʃ/).
Its best-known bearer is Kash Patel, born Kashyap Pramod Patel, an American lawyer and former federal prosecutor who became FBI director in 2025.
Kash was rare in the United States until the 2000s. In 2005 it ranked 1,619th, and from there it climbed quickly to a peak of 240th in 2021, when 1,481 boys received it. In 2025 it ranked 286th, with 1,183 babies.
How to pronounce Kash
English
- Pronounced KAHSH /kæʃ/
Popularity of Kash in the U.S.
Kash was the #286 boy name in the U.S. in 2025, with 1,183 babies. It peaked at #240 in 2021 and has been in the top 1,000 since 2008. It first appears in the records in 1916.
- Rank among U.S. boy names (right scale, #1 at the top)
Year-by-year table, 1916–2025 61 rows
| Year | Babies | Rank | vs previous year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,183 | 286 | ▲ 7 |
| 2024 | 1,148 | 293 | ▼ 33 |
| 2023 | 1,327 | 260 | ▼ 16 |
| 2022 | 1,446 | 244 | ▼ 4 |
| 2021 | 1,481 | 240 | ▲ 15 |
| 2020 | 1,380 | 255 | ▲ 34 |
| 2019 | 1,183 | 289 | ▲ 31 |
| 2018 | 1,049 | 320 | ▲ 35 |
| 2017 | 943 | 355 | ▲ 10 |
| 2016 | 908 | 365 | ▲ 17 |
| 2015 | 844 | 382 | ▼ 9 |
| 2014 | 841 | 373 | ▲ 35 |
| 2013 | 725 | 408 | ▲ 112 |
| 2012 | 507 | 520 | ▲ 102 |
| 2011 | 381 | 622 | ▼ 20 |
| 2010 | 413 | 602 | ▲ 120 |
| 2009 | 327 | 722 | ▲ 53 |
| 2008 | 286 | 775 | ▲ 317 |
| 2007 | 167 | 1,092 | ▲ 102 |
| 2006 | 140 | 1,194 | ▲ 425 |
| 2005 | 84 | 1,619 | ▲ 215 |
| 2004 | 67 | 1,834 | ▲ 36 |
| 2003 | 63 | 1,870 | ▲ 467 |
| 2002 | 44 | 2,337 | ▲ 405 |
| 2001 | 34 | 2,742 | ▲ 1,022 |
| 2000 | 21 | 3,764 | ▼ 485 |
| 1999 | 24 | 3,279 | ▲ 740 |
| 1998 | 17 | 4,019 | ▼ 1,269 |
| 1997 | 28 | 2,750 | ▲ 543 |
| 1996 | 21 | 3,293 | ▲ 139 |
| 1995 | 19 | 3,432 | ▲ 479 |
| 1994 | 16 | 3,911 | ▼ 92 |
| 1993 | 16 | 3,819 | ▼ 360 |
| 1992 | 18 | 3,459 | ▲ 354 |
| 1991 | 15 | 3,813 | ▼ 504 |
| 1990 | 18 | 3,309 | ▲ 708 |
| 1989 | 13 | 4,017 | ▲ 433 |
| 1988 | 10 | 4,450 | ▼ 1,249 |
| 1987 | 15 | 3,201 | ▲ 3,520 |
| 1986 | 5 | 6,721 | ▼ 936 |
| 1985 | 6 | 5,785 | ▼ 812 |
| 1984 | 7 | 4,973 | ▲ 1,265 |
| 1983 | 5 | 6,238 | ▼ 2,004 |
| 1982 | 9 | 4,234 | ▲ 727 |
| 1981 | 7 | 4,961 | back (not recorded in 1980) |
| 1979 | 11 | 3,569 | ▲ 288 |
| 1978 | 9 | 3,857 | back (not recorded in 1971–1977) |
| 1970 | 6 | 4,230 | ▼ 1,369 |
| 1969 | 10 | 2,861 | back (not recorded in 1967–1968) |
| 1966 | 5 | 3,948 | back (not recorded in 1965) |
| 1964 | 6 | 3,601 | ▲ 447 |
| 1963 | 5 | 4,048 | ▼ 408 |
| 1962 | 6 | 3,640 | ▲ 426 |
| 1961 | 5 | 4,066 | ▼ 1,195 |
| 1960 | 9 | 2,871 | ▲ 748 |
| 1959 | 6 | 3,619 | ▼ 60 |
| 1958 | 6 | 3,559 | back (not recorded in 1935–1957) |
| 1934 | 5 | 3,679 | back (not recorded in 1923–1933) |
| 1922 | 6 | 3,872 | back (not recorded in 1918–1921) |
| 1917 | 5 | 3,981 | ▼ 465 |
| 1916 | 6 | 3,516 | new |
Kash by state
Kash ranks #126 in Hawaii (2025).
Rank by state 41 states
| State | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Hawaii | 126 | 8 |
| Louisiana | 132 | 38 |
| Arkansas | 134 | 26 |
| Kentucky | 149 | 36 |
| Mississippi | 165 | 19 |
| West Virginia | 168 | 11 |
| Oklahoma | 169 | 29 |
| Kansas | 175 | 22 |
| Georgia | 183 | 68 |
| South Dakota | 192 | 7 |
| Utah | 206 | 26 |
| Nebraska | 210 | 12 |
| Idaho | 214 | 12 |
| Alabama | 223 | 25 |
| Missouri | 238 | 30 |
| Florida | 250 | 82 |
| Indiana | 254 | 32 |
| Iowa | 257 | 15 |
| Ohio | 259 | 48 |
| Tennessee | 259 | 34 |
| South Carolina | 265 | 21 |
| Texas | 267 | 148 |
| Colorado | 272 | 24 |
| North Carolina | 307 | 40 |
| Virginia | 316 | 26 |
| Pennsylvania | 318 | 35 |
| Oregon | 326 | 12 |
| Connecticut | 326 | 9 |
| Arizona | 332 | 23 |
| Maryland | 344 | 15 |
| New Mexico | 360 | 5 |
| Washington | 364 | 20 |
| Nevada | 389 | 7 |
| Michigan | 393 | 22 |
| California | 397 | 83 |
| Illinois | 416 | 26 |
| Wisconsin | 437 | 11 |
| New York | 562 | 28 |
| Minnesota | 640 | 7 |
| Massachusetts | 690 | 6 |
| New Jersey | 766 | 8 |
Notable people named Kash
- Kash Patel — Kashyap Pramod Patel is an American lawyer and former federal prosecutor who has served as FBI director since 2025 and briefly as acting ATF director from February to April 2025.
- Kash Doll is an American rapper and actress from Detroit, signed to Republic Records, known for For Everybody and Ice Me Out, her albums Stacked and The Last Doll, and collaborations with Meek Mill and Big Sean.