Given name & surname
Stockton
“from the town of tree stumps”
Stockton is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “from the town of tree stumps.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “from the town of tree stumps.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
From Old English stocc (“log; stump, tree trunk”), built from English stock + -ton.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1917. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Stockton through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,366
- 1,366 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2020
- 62 babies
- 2025
- 35
- #3,370 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −15%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 35 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 3,370 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 15.0% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, Utah had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (13). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,086 as a first name in 2020; 12,626 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.
Stockton’s family of names
In English usage, Stockton has a diminutive in Stock. In English usage, Stockton shares an earlier linguistic root with STOUGHTON. Stockton has a related form in Stocktan.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Stockton, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Locke
“man of the forest” · “from the fortress”
>99% boys
Woods
“a woman of the forest” · “a man of the forest”
98% boys · 2% girls
Hudson
“one who is adventurous; an explorer” · “the son of Hugh; from the river”
99% boys · 1% girls
Jett
“resembling the jet-black lustrous gemstone”
98% boys · 2% girls
Stockwell
“from the spring near the tree stumps”
>99% boys
Stockley
“from the meadow of tree stumps”
>99% boys
Bentley
“from the meadow of bent grass”
95% boys · 5% girls
Crompton
“river bend”
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