Kitson
A diminutive form of the masculine English name Christopher, meaning "bearer of Christ".
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Kitson. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kitson today is around 6 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kitson births was 2016 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kitson. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Kitson with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Kitson. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
2016
5 babies that year
Average age
6
years old
2024 SSA rank
#13,314
Tracked since 2016
Popularity
Kitson: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kitson from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kitson 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 Kitson during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kitson
The name Kitson is believed to have its origins in the Old English language, dating back to the 5th century AD. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "cytere," which means "kite" or "a type of hawk." The name likely referred to someone who was skilled in falconry or someone who had a physical resemblance to a kite or hawk.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kitson can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, a survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "Chittesone," which is believed to be a variation of the modern spelling.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Kitson. One of the earliest was William Kitson (c. 1280 - c. 1350), an English landowner and member of the gentry from Yorkshire. Another was Sir Thomas Kitson (c. 1485 - 1540), a wealthy merchant and cloth manufacturer who served as a member of the Privy Council under Henry VIII.
In the 17th century, there was Robert Kitson (1604 - 1676), an English clergyman and author who wrote several theological works. A century later, James Kitson (1735 - 1810) was a prominent English engineer and inventor who contributed to the development of the early industrial revolution.
During the 19th century, one of the more notable figures with the name was James Kitson (1807 - 1885), a British industrialist and engineer who founded the Kitson & Company locomotive manufacturing company in Leeds, England.
While the name Kitson may have originated as a reference to falconry or physical appearance, it has become a distinctive and enduring name throughout the centuries, borne by individuals from various walks of life, including landowners, merchants, clergymen, engineers, and industrialists.
People
Kitson + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kitson 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
Kitson: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kitson?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kitson 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Kitson a common name?
We classify Kitson as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% 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 Kitson most popular?
The single biggest year for Kitson was 2016, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kitson is about 6 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 Kitson in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kitson a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kitson 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 Kitson still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kitson 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 Kitson 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 are called Kitson?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.