Longer Names for Kai: Nikolai, Kaius, and More

Kai names weren’t a thing – at all! – even thirty years ago.

Hawaiian mini name Kai has raced up the popularity charts. Combining a strong sound, a meaning borrowed from the natural world, and a similar-but-different style, Kai has caught on in a big way.

Worth noting: there’s more than one origin for Kai. Some of the variations on this list reflect different linguistic and cultural backstories.

There’s no question that Kai, along with other Hawaiian boy names like Koa and girl names like Leilani, are trending because of that specific, 50th-state image. 

Several Asian languages use Kai or a similar name. That’s not surprising; the indigenous language in Hawaii is Polynesian, and ultimately part of the same language family as Malay and Filipino.

Other variants of Kai take us to northern Europe. Kai, Kay, Kaj, Cai, and Caj are heard in Germany and Scandinavian, in languages like Frisian and Danish. It’s sometimes associated with legends of King Arthur. FIXLINK

K’ai is a Navajo word meaning willow tree, but it’s a stretch to call it a Native American name. FIXLINK

This list includes boy names containing Kai, though some of these are unisex – including Kai. While it remains overwhelmingly most popular among baby boys, it’s at home on lists of girls names, too. In some languages, including Estonian, Kai is a nickname for Katherine, a cousin to Kay and Kaye.

Plenty of famous people, including Naomi Watts and Liev Schreiber, have chosen the name for their children. Jennifer Connelly’s oldest son Kai is another high profile mention.

AKAI

Japanese name with multiple meanings, including ocean, the color red, and love.

ALAKAI

It looks like Malakai, hold the M. But Alaka’i is a Hawaiian name meaning leader.

CAI

Sometimes short for Latin names like Caius, Cai is also the Welsh name for Sir Kay, one of the Knights of the Round Table.

CAIRO, KAIRO

Egyptian place name with history to spare. Cairo has been used as a boy’s name – and sometimes for girls, too – since the 1970s. Spellings Kairo and Kyro are seen, too, possibly to connect more obviously to Kai.

CAIUS, KAIUS

The Roman given name Gaius – meaning “rejoice” – became Caius over time. It can be spelled Kaius, of course. While neither are common, they fit with so many ancient boys’ names in use now.

CORNELIUS

The Dutch and German Kai is sometimes short for Cornelius. While it doesn’t seem obvious in American English, it’s still a possibility.

DAKAI

Chinese name meaning great and triumph.

ELIKAI

Either a Hebrew name meaning “my God lives” or a Hawaiian name meaning radiant, Elikai combines Kai with so many favorite Eli- names.

EZEKAI

Probably a streamlined version of Hezekiah.

HEZEKAI

Hezekiah is a powerful Old Testament name meaning “God strengthens.” Hezekai is a 21st century update.

JAKAI

Jack meets Zakai, taking inspiration from other Ja- names like Jaylen.

KAIAN, KAION

Arabic, Chinese, Japanese, Persian … or just plain invented based on Kai + plus an N ending? It’s all of the above.

KAIDEN, KAIDYN

Kaiden rhymes with Aiden and Jayden. It seems like a difficult path to Kai-rhymes-with-Sky. Still, Kaiden has ranked in the Top 250 most popular names for boys in the US since 2005. Over the twenty years, doubtless some Kaidens have become Kai.

KAIKOA

A name merging two of the most appealing Hawaiian boys’ names, Kaikoa means “sea warrior.”

KAILEO

Spelled Kaleo, this Hawaiian name means voice. But Kaileo might shift the meaning slightly. One possibility: “voice of the ocean.”

KAILO, KYLO

Almost certainly borrowed from the Star Wars character, though sometimes re-spelled to emphasize the first syllable.

KAIMANA

Hawaiian name meaning ocean and power, or possibly diamond.

KAINAN 

Also spelled Kenan and Cainan, this Hebrew name appears as a great-grandson of Adam in the Old Testament.

KAINOA

Traditional Hawaiian compound name, from words meaning sea and freedom. It picks up on the popularity of Noah and Kai.

KAIO

Japanese name with a bright, cheerful sound.

KAIRE, KAIRI

Probably a name in the key of Kyrie, as in basketball player Kyrie Irving. In Hawaiian, Kairi can mean “calm sea.”

KAIROS

In Greek mythology, Kairos was the personification of luck, or more specifically, favorable moments. His name is also spelled Caerus. 

KAIS

Arabic name related to Qays. 

KAISEI

A Kai name that sounds like “ky-say.” One possible meaning: sea star. Another is clear sea.

KAISER, KAIZER

A title previously used for rulers in Germany and Austria, Kaiser is the equivalent of Emperor, ultimately derived from the ancient Caesar.

KAISEN, KAISON, KAIZEN, KYSON

A spin on Tyson, influenced by Kai.

KAITO

A name with roots in both Japanese and Igbo languages. 

KAIVON

It seems like an exaggerated take on Kevin, boosted by the Kai sound.

KAIZA, KAIZAH

Both spellings are rare, but appear in the data. They might be a sort of Kai-Ezra smoosh, or a take on Kaisa, a Finnish/Estonian nickname for Katherine. It’s also a name in the Naruto manga. There’s also Kaisa, meaning flame.

KYLE, KYLER, KYLEN

Additional spellings apply for nearly all of these names – Kylan, for starters. With the exception of Scottish surname Kyle, they’re all recent inventions based on stylish sounds from the last few decades.

LUKAI

It sounds like Luke or Luca meets Kai. Olukai is a footwear brand based on the words comfort – olu – and ocean.

MAKAI, MAKAII, MEKAI, MIKAI

In Hawaiian, Makai means “towards the ocean.” (Since Kai is the Hawaiian word for ocean.) 

MAKAIO

The typical Hawaiian form of Matthew.

MALACHI

An Old Testament name that easily shortens to Kai … at least on sound. The only issue, of course, is that the letters “Kai” aren’t present, and spelling your son’s nickname “Chi” seems problematic.

MALAKAI, MALIKAI

A phonetic spelling of Malachi that simples up the Malakai-Kai connection.

MARKAI

A Mark elaboration, this generation’s equivalent of Marquis.

MICAIAH, MIKAIAH

A unisex name from the Old Testament, Micaiah means “who is like God?” It’s the source of the name Micah. Mikaiah puts Kai at the center of the name. Other spellings are seen, too.

MIKAIL

Slavic forms of Michael are often spelled Mikhail – quite close to Kai. But the Turkish form of the name is more clearly connected to the syllable Kai.

MORDECAI, MORDECHAI, MORDEKAI

An Old Testament name with Persian roots. Like Malachi, it’s sometimes respelled to make the Kai pronuncation more obvious.

NAKAI

New Kai name possibility. 

NICHOLAS, NIKOLAI

European languages sometimes derive Kai from Nicholas. That feels like a stretch in English, but the Russian Nikolai could be a logical path to the nickname.

RAKAI

Newcomer of a name.

SAKAI, SEKAI

Sakai is sometimes a Japanese name, or possibly just a twist on Zakai. Sekai started out as a name used by the Shona people. 

SKAI

Sky blended wtih Kai.

TAKAI

Borrowed from a Japanese surname. George Takai rhymes with last name with Kay, but it’s easy to imagine Ta-Ky as an alternative. It means “high well.”

XAKAI

A respelling of Zakai.

ZAKAI

Another Old Testament name, Zakai means pure. It’s often spelled Zaccai or Zakkai, but this spelling is the most popular right now. It looks a little like a Zack + Kai mash-up, but it feels established.

ZAKAIUS, ZAKAIAH

Elaborations of Zakai, inspired by Caius and similar names. 

What’s your favorite formal name for Kai?

This post was originally published on November 29, 2023 as a #namehelp for parents seeking a longer name for Kai. On April 10, 2025 it was expanded to list even more options.