Ken (given name)

Ken is a Japanese name which can have many different meanings depending on the kanji used. Ken is also a masculine given name of Scottish / Scottish Gaelic origin. It is used either as a given name or as a short form of names with the letters "Ken" (like Kenneth, Kenan, Kendrick, Kendall, Kennedy, Mackenzie, Kenson, or Kenelm).

People[edit]

• Ken (musician) (born 1968), Japanese musician and member of the bands L'Arc-en-Ciel and Sons of All Pussys
• Ken Akamatsu (赤松 健, born 1968), Japanese author
• Ken Anderson (quarterback) (born 1949), American quarterback
• Ken Anderson (wrestler) (born 1976), American professional wrestler known under the ring name Mr. Kennedy
• Ken Barrie (1933–2016), English voice actor and singer
• Ken Block (disambiguation), multiple people
• Ken Bowersox (born 1956), astronaut
• Ken Bruce (born 1951), Scottish DJ
• Ken Buesseler (born 1959), American marine radiochemist
• Ken Burns (born 1953), American documentary filmmaker
• Ken Caminiti (1963–2004), Major League Baseball player
• Ken Campbell (1941–2008), English writer, actor, and director
• Ken Campbell (evangelist) (1934–2006), Canadian evangelist
• Ken Carlson (born 1951), American politician
• Ken Casey, bassist of the Boston Irish punk rock group Dropkick Murphys
• Ken Chan (Filipino actor) (born 1993), Filipino actor
• Ken Christianson, California based artist and musician, with art collective Elephant Empire
• Ken Clark (actor) (1927–2009), American actor
• Ken Clouston, member of the Wyoming House of Representatives
• Ken Davitian (born 1953), American film and TV actor
• Ken Dodd (1927–2018), English comedian and singer
• Ken Doherty (born 1969), Irish professional snooker player, commentator and radio presenter
• Ken Dyer (1946–2010), American football player
• Ken Dryden (born 1947), Canadian politician, lawyer, businessman, author, and former NHL goaltender
• Ken Flax (born 1963), American Olympic hammer thrower
• Ken Follett (born 1949), British author of thrillers and historical novels
• Ken Giles (born 1990), American baseball player
• Ken Griffey Sr. (born 1950), American baseball player
• Ken Griffey Jr. (born 1969), American baseball player
• Ken Ham (born 1951), Australian-born American creationist
• Ken Harrelson (born 1941), Major League Baseball player and broadcaster
• Ken Harris (1898–1982), American animator
• Ken Hendricks, billionaire (1941–2007), president of Hendricks Group
• Ken Hirai (平井 堅, born 1972), J-pop singer known for the hit songs "Hitomi wo Tojite" and "POP STAR"
• Ken Hoang (born 1985), American professional electronic sports player
• Ken Holtzman (born 1945), American Major League Baseball pitcher
• Ken Hon, American geologist and head of Hawaiian Volcano Observatory
• Ken Horiuchi (堀内 健, born 1969), Japanese comedian
• Ken Hughes (1922–2001), writer and director of films, including Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
• Ken Jennings (born 1974), contestant, executive producer and host of the game show Jeopardy!
• Ken Jeong (born 1969), American comedian, actor and former physician
• Ken Kelley (American football) (born 1960), American football player
• Ken Kelley (journalist) (1949–2008), American journalist and publisher
• Ken Kesey (1935–2001), novelist, author of One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
• Ken Kirby, Canadian-born actor and screenwriter
• Ken Klippenstein, American journalist
• Ken Kratz (born 1960–61), American lawyer, former district attorney of Calumet County, Wisconsin; law license was suspended for four months after sexting scandal
• Ken Kutaragi (born 1950), President and CEO, later Chairman, of Sony Computer Entertainment
• Ken Kwaku (born 1946), Ghanaian corporate governance expert
• Ken Lay (1942–2006), CEO and Chairman of Enron
• Ken Labanowski (born 1959), American-Israeli basketball player
• Ken Livingstone, politician (born 1945), former mayor of London, UK
• Ken Lloyd (born 1976), Japanese-British musician, vocalist and songwriter of Fake? and Oblivion Dust
• Ken Loach (born 1936), British film director
• Ken Lutz (born 1965), American football player
• Ken Matthews (disambiguation), multiple people
• Ken McAlister (born 1960), American football player
• Ken McCarthy (born 1959), American activist, educator, entrepreneur and Internet commercialization pioneer
• Ken McCarty (born 1958), American politician
• Ken MacLeod (born 1954), Scottish science fiction writer
• Ken McElroy (1934–1981), American unsolved murder victim and criminal
• Ken Messer (1931–2018), British painter
• Ken Miyagishima (born 1963), American mayor
• Ken Mizuno (水野 剣, born 1978), Japanese freestyle skier
• Ken Morrish (1919–2006), former mayor of the city of Scarborough, Ontario, Canada
• Ken Morrison (1931–2017), English supermarket CEO
• Ken Murray (disambiguation), multiple people
• Ken Nomura (born 1965), member of the drifting motorsport scene and of the D1 Grand Prix series
• Ken Okuyama (ケン・オクヤマ, born 1959), Japanese car designer, creative director of Pininfarina, professor
• Ken Parrish (born 1984), American football player
• Ken Penders, American comic book writer
• Ken Pettway (born 1964), American player of gridiron football
• Ken Pogue (1934–2015), Canadian actor
• Ken Ring (rapper) (born 1979), Swedish rapper
• Ken Robinson (disambiguation), multiple people
• Ken Rosewall (born 1934), Grand Slam tennis champion
• Ken Rush (1931–2011), former NASCAR Cup Series driver
• Ken Russell (1927–2011), film director and actor
• Ken Rutherford (cricketer) (born 1965), New Zealand cricketer
• Ken Saro-Wiwa (1941–1995), writer and political activist
• Ken Schrader (born 1955), NASCAR driver
• Ken Seals, American college football player
• Ken Shamrock (born 1964), American mixed martial artist and retired professional wrestler
• Ken Shimura (志村 けん, 1950–2020), Japanese comedian, member of the Drifters
• Ken Shimizu (清水 健, born 1979), Japanese male adult video (AV) actor
• Ken Singleton (born 1947), American Major League Baseball player and commentator
• Ken Sio (born 1990), Australian Rugby League player
• Ken Spears (1938–2020), American cartoonist and film producer
• Ken Spikes (1935–2009), former NASCAR Cup Series driver
• Ken Spreitzer, computer programmer
• Ken Starr (1946–2022), American lawyer and judge
• Ken Stott (born 1954), Scottish actor
• Ken Sugimori (杉森 建, born 1966), Japanese illustrator known for his work on the Pokémon video games
• Ken Takakura (高倉 健, 1931–2014), Japanese film actor
• Ken Terrell (1904–1966), actor and stuntman
• Ken Thaiday Snr (born 1950), Torres Strait Islander/Australian artist
• Ken Thompson (born 1943), American computer scientist and one of the primary creators of Unix
• Ken Tyrrell (1924–2001), founder of the Formula One team Tyrrell Racing
• Ken Uehara (1909–1991), Japanese film actor
• Ken Wahl (born 1954), American actor
• Ken Waldichuk (born 1998), American baseball player
• Ken Watabe (渡部 建, born 1972), Japanese comedian and television presenter
• Ken Watanabe (渡辺 謙, born 1959), Japanese theater, TV, and film actor
• Ken Webster (disambiguation), multiple people
• Ken Whyld (1926–2003), British chess player and author
• Ken Winey (born 1962), Canadian football player
• Ken Zheng (born 1995), Indonesian actor, screenwriter and martial artist

Fictional characters[edit]

• Ken Amada (天田 乾), a character in Persona 3
• Ken (Barbie) also known as Ken Carson, toy doll
• Ken Barlow, character in the British TV soap opera Coronation Street
• Ken Cosgrove, a fictional character in the US television series, Mad Men
• Kenshiro (ケンシロウ) or Ken, hero of the manga and anime series Fist of the North Star
• Kenshin Himura (緋村 剣心) or Ken, main character of the manga and anime series Rurouni Kenshin
• Ken Ryūgūji (龍宮寺 堅), a character of the manga and anime series Tokyo Revengers
• Ken Hisatsu (久津 ケン), a character in the Juken Sentai Gekiranger
• Ken Hoshikawa (星川 健), a character in Chikyu Sentai Fiveman
• Ken Ichijouji (一乗寺 賢), a character in the anime series Digimon
• Ken Joshima (城島 犬), a character in the anime series Reborn!
• Ken Kaneki (金木 研), main character of the manga and anime series Tokyo Ghoul
• Ken Kogashiwa (小柏 健), a character in Initial D
• Ken Marks, a character in 1993 action/martial arts movie Showdown
• Ken Masters (ケン・マスターズ), character in the Street Fighter video games
• Ken Midori or Kensuke Midorikawa (緑川 ケンスケ), a character in the anime series Beyblade Burst
• Ken Minami (美波 ケン), character in the anime series Machine Robo Rescue
• Ken Murphy, a character in the 2009 American romantic comedy-drama movie He's Just Not That Into You, Daphne Zuniga
• Ken Rosenberg, a character in the Grand Theft Auto video games
• Ultraman Ken, better known as Father of Ultra, from the Ultraman Series; true name revealed in the film Mega Monster Battle: Ultra Galaxy Legend

See also[edit]

• Ken (disambiguation)
• Kenneth
• Kenny (disambiguation)

Name list

This page or section lists people that share the same given name.
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