Makenna peaked in 2005 and currently holds #525, with just over 33,000 recorded bearers. It's one of several American phonetic spellings of the Irish surname MacKenna — a name that means "son of Cionaodh" (roughly "born of fire" or "fire-born"). The American form stripped the Mac- prefix, softened the consonants, and created something that reads as feminine and contemporary while keeping a faint Irish undertone.
An Irish Surname's American Journey
The original Gaelic surname Mac Cionaoith was an Irish patronymic — a name meaning "son of Cionaodh," with Cionaodh itself possibly relating to cion (fire) and Aodh (ancient Irish fire deity). In its American given-name form, the spelling has proliferated: McKenna, Makenna, Mckenna, Mackenna — each slightly different in visual feel. Makenna specifically adds a softened, phonetically spelled freshness that distances it from the surname form. See also Kenna for the standalone nickname version.
The McKenna Family and Its Spellings
McKenna (with capital K) is the most traditionally Irish-looking spelling and the most common in the SSA data. Makenna reads as the most thoroughly Americanized version — spelling it to match the sound precisely, removing the Irish capitalization convention. Neither spelling is more "correct"; they're just different choices about how much to signal the Irish origin versus the American creation. Browse Irish-origin names for the full context of this naming tradition.
A Name That's Finding Its Footing
Makenna's drop from its 2005 peak to #525 is real, but 33,000 bearers means there's a significant generation of Makennas in their late teens and early twenties. For new parents, the name isn't overused , but it's not obscure either. The three-syllable flow ma-KEN-na is easy and pleasant. The main risk is getting tangled in the spelling proliferation: you'll need to specify which version your daughter has. Compare with McKenna to see the difference in feel side by side.