Given name & surname · also North Germanic
Kirsten
“follower of Christ”
Kirsten is a variant of Kristina. In English use, Kristina carries the interpretation “follower of Christ.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Kirsten is a variant of Kristina. In English use, Kristina carries the interpretation “follower of Christ.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Kirsten comes from North Germanic, and ultimately from Norwegian.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1937. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Kirsten through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 53,393
- 212 boys · 53,181 girls
- Most popular year
- 1991
- 1,938 babies
- 2025
- 60
- #2,841 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −44%
- Cooling
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 60 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 2,841 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 43.9% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 1,931 in 1991. In 2025, Pennsylvania had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (12). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 50,529 as a first name in 2020; 640 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.
Kirsten’s family of names
In English usage, Kirsten shares an earlier linguistic root with Christina. Kirsten is a form of Christine. In Norwegian usage, Kirsten has a conventional equivalent in the French form Christine.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Kirsten has relatives in 7 languages. Lines run from its Norwegian roots to each of them.
Norwegianwhere Kirsten comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 13
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 14
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Kirsten
- Kirsten DunstAmerican actress (born 1982)
- Kirsten GillibrandAmerican politician (born 1966)
- Kirsten FlipkensBelgian tennis playerborn 1986
- Kirsten FlagstadNorwegian opera singer (1895-1962)
- Kirsten VangsnessAmerican actress and screenwriterborn 1972
- Kirsten ProutCanadian actressborn 1990
- Kirsten WildDutch racing cyclistborn 1982
- Kirsten EmmelmannEast German sprinterborn 1961
- Kirsten BarnesCanadian rowerborn 1968
Characters named Kirsten: Kirsten Cohen (fictional human).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Kirsten, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Caitlin
“one who is pure; virginal”
>99% girls
Karly
“a small, strong woman”
>99% girls
Karina
“one who is dear and pure”
>99% girls
Darby
“of the deer park”
18% boys · 82% girls
Alisha
Alisha is a feminine given name from Germanic.
>99% girls
Breanna
“from the high hill; one who ascends”
>99% girls
Bryanna
“from the high hill; one who ascends”
>99% girls
Sade
“one who is honorable”
4% boys · 96% girls