Kai (name)

The name Kai /ˈkaɪ/ has various origins and meanings in different cultures:

• In Basque, kai is a common word meaning "pier of a harbor" and a variant of the first name Kaio (from the old Latin name Caius, meaning "happy").
• In Chinese, Kai is a very common given name with one of several meanings, most commonly "victory" (凯/凱), "start" or "open" (开/開). Kai is often used in names meaning "start" (啓) in Cantonese Chinese.
• In Estonian, Kai is a female name meaning "pier".
• In Finnish, Kai is a common male name, Finnish form of Kaj.
• In Frisian, Kai is a short form of Frisian "Kaimbe", meaning "warrior".
• In German, Kai has the same meaning as in Frisian.
• In Hawaiian, Kai is a unisex name which means "sea".
• In Hebrew, some consider Kai to be an acronym for "holiness of the land of Israel".[1]
• In Japanese, kai has a number of meanings, including "ocean" (海), "shell" (貝), "restoration" and "recovery".[2][3] As a surname, it means "Worth" (甲斐).
• In Kono and Kissi, Kai is a male name; it is also a paramount chief title or prefix that means king of kings.
• In Maori, kai means "food" or "meal".[4]
• In Swahili, Kai is a female name meaning "lovable".
• In Swedish, Kai is a male name meaning "rejoice".
• In Tamil, kai means vegetables or cooked vegetables.
• In Thai, kai means "chicken" and is used as a nickname.
• In Turkish, Kai is a male given name derived from kayı meaning "strong".
• In Welsh, Kai is a popular given name normally spelled "Cai". It is used as an independent name in Wales due to its use in the Arthurian legend of Sir Kay.
• In Scottish, Kai means "fire".

Look up Kai in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

In Northern Ireland, data indicated that Kai experienced a significant rise in popularity as a male given name from 2002 to 2003. It has become popular in the United Kingdom, with many children born in the mid to late 1990s given the name. While it is typically a male given name, in recent years it has become popular for girls as well.[5]