Given name & surname
King
“the royal ruler”
King is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “the royal ruler.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “the royal ruler.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
King through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 37,890
- 37,850 boys · 40 girls
- Most popular year
- 2017
- 2,705 babies
- 2025
- 786
- #405 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −47%
- Cooling
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 786 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 405 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 46.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 2,696 in 2017. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (107). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 22,343 as a first name in 2020; 453,539 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
King’s family of names
In English usage, King as a surname shares a linguistic root with the German form König. King has a related form in Kyng. In Filipino usage, King as a surname has a related form in KENG.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
King has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its English roots to each of them.
7 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 8
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 6
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 5
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named King
- King VidorAmerican film director, film producer, and screenwriter (1894-1982)
- King C. GilletteAmerican entrepreneur (1855–1932)
- King BachCanadian-American internet personality and actor (born 1988)
- King CurtisAmerican saxophonist (1934–1971)
- King KruleEnglish singer-songwriterborn 1994
- King Donovanactor and director (1918-1987)
- King GyanGhanaian footballerborn 1988
- King FlemingAmerican pianist (1922–2014)
- King O'MalleyAustralian politician (1858-1953)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love King, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Kingston
“from the king's town”
>99% boys
Hendrick
“the ruler of the house” · “home”
>99% boys
Aldrich
“an old king”
>99% boys
Kington
“king”
—
Kingswood
“king”
—
Kingstone
“king's” · “fort, manor, town”
>99% boys
Kerrick
“under the king's rule”
>99% boys
Kenway
“a brave or royal warrior”
>99% boys