| Kingston | King | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | king's town | king |
| Origin | english | english |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | KING-stun | king |
| Syllables | 2 | 1 |
| First appeared | 1919 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 2021 (3,410) | 2017 (2,696) |
| In 2025 | 1,725 | 786 |
| Trend | Rising | Rising |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Kingston | King |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 15,867 | 9,057 |
| 2010s | 25,651 | 20,440 |
| 2000s | 4,528 | 1,950 |
| 1990s | 190 | 439 |
| 1980s | 61 | 335 |
| 1970s | 28 | 316 |
| 1960s | 7 | 454 |
| 1950s | 19 | 708 |
| 1940s | 31 | 818 |
| 1930s | 10 | 801 |
| 1920s | 9 | 998 |
| 1910s | 5 | 795 |
| 1900s | 0 | 277 |
| 1890s | 0 | 233 |
| 1880s | 0 | 229 |
An English place name and surname meaning 'king's town' or 'king's settlement' (Old English 'cyning' + 'tun'). A place-name origin referencing a king rather than meaning 'king' outright.
The English vocabulary word 'king' (Old English 'cyning') used directly as a given name. A transferred surname/word-name rather than an etymological 'king' name from another root.
Kingston is more popular than King today: about 1,725 US babies were given the name Kingston in 2025, compared with 786 named King.
Kingston means king's town (english origin), while King means king (english origin).
In US records, Kingston first appears in 1919 and King in 1880, so King has the longer recorded history.