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Keino
How to Pronounce Keino
Pronounced KAY-noh /ˈkeɪ.noʊ/Medium
Meaning: Keino is a Kalenjin (Nandi) clan surname from Kenya; its use as a first name in the United States, beginning in 1972, most plausibly honors the celebrated Kenyan Olympic runner Kip Keino, whose own given name was actually Kipchoge, with Keino as his surname.Low
Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data
U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.
SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.
History & Origin
Keino comes from a Kalenjin clan surname in Kenya. Its appearance as an American first name starting in 1972 closely tracks the fame of distance runner Kip Keino, a double Olympic gold medalist that year, though his own first name was Kipchoge, not Keino.
Keino was never common, given to only about twenty boys a year at its peak around 1972, and it continued in scattered use for decades after. It reads as a name honoring an athlete's surname rather than reviving a first name of its own.
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Frequently Asked
What does the name Keino mean?
It is a Kalenjin surname from Kenya, likely adopted as a first name honoring Olympic runner Kip Keino.
How do you pronounce Keino?
It is said KAY-noh /ˈkeɪ.noʊ/, two syllables with the stress on the first.
Is Keino a boy or girl name?
Keino is used as a boy's name.
How popular is Keino?
It has always been rare in the United States, given to only about twenty boys a year at its peak in the early nineteen-seventies, continuing in scattered use for decades.