embrisa.
embrisa.
Theme
Masculine

Kingston

/ˈkɪŋ.stən/

King's town

Old English

How to say it

KING · ston

/ˈkɪŋ.stən/

What it means

Old English place name from cyning ('king') + tūn ('town'). The capital of Jamaica is Kingston; Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale naming their son Kingston (2006) sparked the modern US first-name surge.

Kingston is an English place name from Old English cyning ('king') + tūn ('town'). Multiple villages in England carry the name (Kingston upon Thames in London, Kingston upon Hull). Kingston, Jamaica, is the capital and largest city of the island, founded 1693 and named for King William III. Reggae's roots in Kingston gave the name particular cultural weight. Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale naming their son Kingston (2006) sparked the modern US first-name surge. It entered the US top 200 in 2013. Common short: King.

Popularity over time

#10 #100 #1000 #1 #661418802025

peaked at #112 in 2021, currently #204 in 2025.

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving

Heads-up notes

  • Pop culture

    Kingston, Jamaica (the reggae capital) and the Stefani-Rossdale firstborn cover two different cultural surfaces; some families lean into the Jamaica/reggae coding, others use the name without it.

Who's worn it

Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.

  • Kingston, Jamaica Capital of Jamaica, the reggae cradle
  • Kingston Rossdale Gwen Stefani and Gavin Rossdale's eldest son, born 2006

Spelling variants

  • Kingstone