Find out how popular the last name Kingston is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Kingston.

Kingston, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Kingston surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kingston in America

Kingston is the 4998th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kingston surname appeared 7,033 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Kingston.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kingston to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Kingston

The surname Kingston has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is a locational name derived from the Old English words "cyning" meaning king and "tun" meaning town or settlement. This suggests that the name originally referred to someone who lived in a town or village associated with a king or royal figure.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries. For example, the Hundred Rolls of 1273 mentions a John de Kyngeston in Wiltshire, while the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in 1275 reference a Robert de Kyngeston.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, a comprehensive record of landowners and estates in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, there are several entries for places with names similar to Kingston, such as "Chingestone" in Hampshire and "Chingestune" in Wiltshire. These place names likely served as the basis for the surname Kingston.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Kingston was Sir William Kingston (c. 1476-1540), an English courtier and Constable of the Tower of London during the reign of King Henry VIII. He played a significant role in the downfall of Anne Boleyn, Henry's second wife.

Another notable figure was Sir John Kingston (c. 1585-1638), an English colonist and sea captain who helped establish the first permanent English settlement in Barbados in the 17th century. He was appointed as the first governor of the colony in 1625.

In the realm of literature, Rachel Kingston (1818-1871) was a notable English novelist and writer of children's stories in the Victorian era. Her works included "The Golden Meadows" and "The Marquis of Trevellyan."

Sir Armine Woodhouse Kingston (1887-1956) was a British Army officer who served in World War I and later became a notable author of adventure stories for children, publishing over 200 books during his lifetime.

Lastly, Maxine Hong Kingston (born 1940) is an American author and professor who has gained recognition for her works exploring the experiences of Chinese Americans, including her acclaimed memoir "The Woman Warrior."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kingston

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Kingston.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Kingston was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Kingston has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Kingston was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kingston, please contact us.

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