The baby name Kapena is a Male name , 3 syllables long and is pronounced kah-PEH-nah (IPA: /kaˈpɛna/).
Kapena is Hawaiian in Origin.
The baby name Kapena is a Male name , 3 syllables long and is pronounced kah-PEH-nah (IPA: /kaˈpɛna/).
Kapena is Hawaiian in Origin.
Kapena is a Hawaiian given name from kāpena, the Hawaiian word for “captain,” a 19th‑century borrowing of English captain (via French capitaine and ultimately Latin capitaneus, “chief”). In Hawaiian sources it first appears as a title - famously in Kāpena Kuke for Captain Cook - before entering personal use, fitting the local practice of adopting honorifics and descriptive terms as names.
Usage today is centered in Hawai‘i and among the diaspora; the name reads modern yet rooted, with nautical and leadership overtones. It skews masculine but, like many Hawaiian names, can be unisex. The preferred orthography with diacritic is Kāpena; Anglicized Kapena is widespread. Variants are scarce, though Kap serves as a nickname. Cognate titles in Polynesia include Samoan Kapeteni and Tongan Kapiteni, typically not used as given names.
Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.
| Country | Gender | Year | Rank | Born | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NA | 0 | #32 | 2 | 2,537 | |
| BW | Girls | 0 | #151 | 1 | 4,216 |
| NA | Girls | 0 | #212 | 13 | 7,146 |
| NA | Boys | 0 | #249 | 5 | 6,830 |
| United States | Boys | 2024 | #888 | 5 | 7,044 |
| ZA | Boys | 0 | #1,272 | 1 | 25,619 |
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