Given name & surname

Simpson

“the son of Simon”·“God has heard”

Simpson is a variant of Simmons. One Hebrew interpretation is “the son of Simon.” In English use, Simpson is a short form of Simon. One Hebrew interpretation is “God has heard.”

Meaning & origin

What it means

Simpson is a variant of Simmons. One Hebrew interpretation is “the son of Simon.” In English use, Simpson is a short form of Simon. One Hebrew interpretation is “God has heard.”

Explained through its name family

Where it comes from

Simpson is a variant of Simmons. An origin associated with Simmons is Hebrew.

Explained through its name family

How it developed

In English usage, Simpson is a short form of Simon. In English usage, Simpson as a surname has a patronymic derivation linked to Sim.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1883. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.

From dated birth records

Simpson through the years

Babies since 1880
707
707 boys · 0 girls
Most popular year
1921
25 babies
2025
0
Outside the ranked list
2021–25 vs 2016–20
—
Too few births to compare
0501001501900192019401960198020002025Highest share 18840.0
Simpson in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1883–2025, per million boys born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

By the numbers

The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 5 in 1992. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 25 in 1921. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 429 as a first name in 2020; 156,097 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.

Simpson’s family of names

In English usage, Simpson is a short form of Simon. In English usage, Simpson as a surname has a patronymic derivation linked to Sim. Simpson has a related form in Simmons.

Walk Simpson’s family in the name graph

SimpsonΣίμψονΣίμπσονΣιμψώνSimonSimmonsSimsonSimpssonSimSimonyanSympson辛普森СімпсонСимпсонSimpsoneシンプソンСимпсънՍիմփսոն

Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Around the world

Simpson has relatives in 12 languages.

EnglishGreekChinese

14 related names in 12 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.

Each dot marks where a language is rooted, not where people with the name live today. Bigger dots hold more names. Dots on the border stand for languages further away. Language locations from Glottolog (CC BY 4.0); map from Natural Earth.

Nicknames & forms 4

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

Spellings & scripts 3

The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.

Similar names

If you love Simpson, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

Old-fashioned

Harmon

“a soldier”

22RareSteady

91% boys · 9% girls

Hebrew

Cephas

“as solid as a rock”

22RareEasing

>99% boys

English · Old-fashioned

Hilton

“a wealthy woman” · “from the town on the hill”

21RareSteady

85% boys · 15% girls

Latin · Literary

Silvio

“a woodland dweller”

31RareRising

>99% boys

Norse

Sigurd

“the protector of victory”

20RareRising fast

>99% boys

English · Old-fashioned

Newton

“from the new town”

20RareEasing

>99% boys

English · Old-fashioned

Sumner

“a legal official; one who serves summons”

24RareRising

82% boys · 18% girls

English · Nature

Wilton

“from the town on the river”

20RareRising

>99% boys

Sibling ideas

Names that share Simpson’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Simpson

A sister for Simpson