Kimbell
From old English origins referring to a dwelling or hamlet near a crooked stream.
Name Census estimates that about 9 living Americans carry the first name Kimbell. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kimbell today is around 59 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kimbell births was 1964 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kimbell. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Kimbell. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
9
~ 1 in 38,083,815 Americans
Peak year
1964
5 babies that year
Average age
59
years old
1966 SSA rank
#4,261
Tracked since 1964
Popularity
Kimbell: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Kimbell by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Kimbell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1960s | 10 | 0 | 10 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Kimbell
The given name Kimbell is believed to have originated from the Old English language, with its roots tracing back to the Anglo-Saxon era in Britain. The name is thought to be a compound word derived from the elements "cyn" meaning "royal" or "noble," and "bell" meaning "beautiful" or "bright." This suggests that the name Kimbell may have initially been bestowed upon individuals of noble or distinguished lineage, celebrating their beauty or radiance.
The earliest recorded use of the name Kimbell can be traced back to the 11th century in England. It is mentioned in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings and inhabitants commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This suggests that the name was already in use among the Anglo-Saxon population before the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest notable individuals bearing the name Kimbell was Sir Kimbell de Montford, a Norman nobleman who fought alongside William the Conqueror during the Norman Conquest of England in 1066. He was granted lands in Warwickshire for his service and is mentioned in several historical records from the period.
In the 13th century, Kimbell de Raleigh, a knight from Devonshire, England, was noted for his participation in the Crusades. He is mentioned in chronicles of the time for his bravery and valor during the siege of Acre in 1291.
During the Renaissance period, Kimbell Shakespere, a distant relative of the renowned playwright William Shakespeare, was a prominent scholar and philosopher. Born in 1532, he authored several treatises on the nature of beauty and the role of art in society.
In the 18th century, Kimbell Wordsworth, a British poet and contemporary of the famous Romantic poet William Wordsworth, gained recognition for his lyrical works celebrating the beauty of nature and the human spirit. He was born in 1768 and his collected works were published in 1810.
Kimbell Austen, a distant cousin of the celebrated novelist Jane Austen, was a renowned painter and portraitist in the early 19th century. Born in 1795, his works captured the elegance and grace of English high society and are now housed in various art galleries across Britain.
While the name Kimbell has remained relatively uncommon throughout history, its enduring presence in various records and notable individuals serves as a testament to its rich heritage and the enduring appreciation for beauty and nobility associated with its meaning.
People
Kimbell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kimbell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Kimbell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kimbell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 9 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kimbell going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 38,083,815 US residents.
Is Kimbell a common name?
We classify Kimbell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 25.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kimbell most popular?
The single biggest year for Kimbell was 1964, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kimbell is about 59 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Kimbell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kimbell a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kimbell in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Kimbell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kimbell in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Kimbell can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Kimbell?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.