Kimberly
Of English and Old English origin meaning "circle of meadow".
Name Census estimates that about 756,331 living Americans carry the first name Kimberly. It sits at #246 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. It is a predominantly female name (99.5% of registrations). The average person named Kimberly today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kimberly births was 1970 (34,246 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kimberly. 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
- • Although Kimberly is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 4,273 boys registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1960s, recent registration numbers for Kimberly have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
756K
~ 1 in 453 Americans
Peak year
1970
34,246 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
2021 SSA rank
#246
Tracked since 1933
Gender
Gender distribution for Kimberly
Out of the 849,647 babies given the name Kimberly since 1880, 99.5% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Kimberly as a male name
- Ranked #11,510 in 2021
- 6 male births in 2021
- Peak: 1955 (177 births)
Kimberly as a female name
- Ranked #246 in 2024
- 1,285 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1970 (34,133 births)
Popularity
Kimberly: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kimberly from the 1930s through to the 2020s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 260,126 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kimberly 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 Kimberly during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kimberlys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Kimberly, while Wyoming, Vermont, Alaska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16,593 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kimberly
The name Kimberly has its origins in the Old English word "cymbrie," which means "from the meadow of Cymry," referring to the Cymry people of Wales. It is a feminine form of the masculine name Kimberly or Kimberley, which was derived from the Middle English words "kin" (meaning "royal" or "noble") and "burgh" (meaning "fort" or "town").
The earliest recorded use of the name Kimberly can be traced back to the late 19th century, when it began to gain popularity in English-speaking countries. It is believed that the name was first used as a given name for girls in England, where it was likely inspired by the town of Kimberley in South Africa, which was named after Lord Kimberley, a British politician.
One of the earliest known historical figures with the name Kimberly was Kimberly Conrad (1858-1944), an American writer and educator. Another notable figure was Kimberly Kumai (1897-1988), a Japanese-American artist and activist who was known for her work in promoting cultural understanding between the United States and Japan.
In the 20th century, the name Kimberly gained widespread popularity in the United States and other English-speaking countries. Some famous individuals with the name Kimberly include Kimberly Elise (born 1967), an American actress known for her roles in films such as Beloved and Diary of a Mad Black Woman, and Kimberly Peirce (born 1967), an American film director best known for her work on Boys Don't Cry.
Another notable figure with the name Kimberly is Kimberly Guilfoyle (born 1969), an American lawyer, prosecutor, and television news personality who has worked for various news organizations, including Fox News. Additionally, Kimberly Locke (born 1978) is an American singer and songwriter who gained recognition as a contestant on the second season of American Idol.
The name Kimberly has remained a popular choice for baby girls in many parts of the world, particularly in English-speaking countries. Its enduring appeal can be attributed to its melodic sound, its connection to the natural world (through its meaning of "meadow"), and its association with notable figures throughout history.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Kimberly
People
Kimberly + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kimberly 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
Kimberly: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kimberly?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 756,331 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kimberly 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 453 US residents.
Is Kimberly a common name?
We classify Kimberly as "Very Common". It ranks above 100% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 849,647 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kimberly most popular?
The single biggest year for Kimberly was 1970, when 34,246 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kimberly is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Kimberly a female name?
Yes, 99.5% of people registered as Kimberly in the SSA data are female. 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.
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.