Charleston
Charleston is a given name and a surname.
Meaning & Origin of Charleston
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Charleston is a given name and a surname.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Charleston
As a girl name
The earliest SSA record of Charleston as a girl name dates back to 1997, when 7 babies received it. 2015 was its biggest year on record, with 255 newborns named Charleston — #1,042 in the national rankings. About 61% of every Charleston on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Charleston ranks #3,685 for girls with 41 births, falling sharply (-42%). All told, over 1K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1990s to the 2020s.
As a boy name
American parents first put Charleston on the record books as a boy name in 1914, with 5 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 2015, when 88 Charlestons were born — ranking #1,739 that year. About 24% of every Charleston on record arrived during the 2010s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Charleston ranks #3,367 for boys with 35 births, falling sharply (-36%). All told, over 3K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1910s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Charleston
Phonetically similar names — useful when Charleston is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Charleston
What does the name Charleston mean?
How popular is Charleston in 2026?
When was Charleston most popular?
In which U.S. states is Charleston most popular?
Is Charleston a unisex name?
What names go well with Charleston?
About the name Charleston
Charleston is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1914 and has accumulated 3K births in the dataset. Charleston's peak popularity came in 2015 when it ranked #1,581. Use the chart and map above to compare Charleston's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2015 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "C" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
- Browse unisex names →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.