Kimberly
Kimberly was the 303rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,009 babies. Its best year was 1966, when it ranked 2nd; the most babies were born in 1970 (34,130). Over the last ten years it has moved down 195 places. More babies were named Kimberly in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Meaning Origin uncertain · Old English
Say it KIM-ber-lee /ˈkɪmbərli/
- Rank in 2025
- #303 girls, down 117 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,009girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 197034,130 babies
- Total since 1880
- 850,666babies recorded
What does the name Kimberly mean?
Kimberly is a spelling of Kimberley, an English place name and surname. Wikipedia explains that the first part reflects various Old English personal names, such as Cyneburg, and the second is leah, 'woodland clearing'. The 1st Earl of Kimberley, named after a Norfolk village, gave the name to a town in South Africa and a region in Australia, and Wikipedia says this popularized it. Wiktionary notes that the given name was popular in the 1960s and 1970s.
lēah (Old English, “woodland clearing”)Cyneburg (Old English, “personal name (one example)”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. The leah ending is clear; the personal name in the first element varies by place.
Related names: Kimberley, Kim, Kimber, Kimmy.
See also: English names, names that mean meadow, hill or valley, names from places.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kimberly', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Kimberley (given name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Kimberly
The usual nicknames for Kimberly are Kim and Kimmy. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Kimberly in the last five years, 3 were named Kim, against 2 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kim · also for Kimber | Traditional | #4,228 | 179 |
| Kimmy | Traditional | #16,181 | 24 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Kimberlys go by each one.
Kimberly popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 4,273 since 1940.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #303 | 1,009 |
| 2020 | #186 | 1,560 |
| 2010 | #69 | 3,871 |
| 2000 | #58 | 5,244 |
| 1990 | #31 | 10,191 |
| 1980 | #11 | 18,497 |
| 1970 | #3 | 34,130 |
| 1960 | #26 | 16,854 |
| 1950 | #382 | 445 |
| 1940 | #2,363 | 13 |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Kimberly, counting every spelling?
Kimberly is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #304 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #303 for Kimberly on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,074 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kimberly | 1,009 | #303 | 6,376 |
| Kimberlee | 29 | #4,705 | 124 |
| Kimberley | 21 | #5,828 | 103 |
| Kimberli | 9 | #10,520 | 58 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Kimberly?
1,009 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kimberly (0.28 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Kimberly born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 8 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kimberly.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kimberly?
About 785,300 people born in the US named Kimberly are alive today, with a median age of 52; half are between 40 and 59. That makes Kimberly mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Kimberly by state
How common Kimberly was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Nebraska (2.0×), Maryland (1.9×), New Mexico (1.9×), California (1.7×), Texas (1.6×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Ohio, South Dakota, Minnesota.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Kimberly: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kimberly, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Kimberly · Sibling names for Kimberly
Questions about the name Kimberly
What does Kimberly mean?
The origin of Kimberly is uncertain: the leah ending is clear; the personal name in the first element varies by place.
How popular is the name Kimberly?
Kimberly was the 303rd most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,009 babies. Its best year was 1966, when it ranked 2nd; the most babies were born in 1970 (34,130). Over the last ten years it has moved down 195 places. More babies were named Kimberly in the 1960s than in any other decade.
Is Kimberly a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Kimberly in the US.
Where is Kimberly most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kimberly was most common in Nebraska (1.56 per 1,000 girls), followed by Maryland and New Mexico.