Kipling
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English journalist, novelist, poet and short-story writer. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
- English
Meaning & Origin of Kipling
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Joseph Rudyard Kipling was an English journalist, novelist, poet and short-story writer. He was born in British India, which inspired much of his work.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Kipling
Kipling first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1952, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 2016, when 16 Kiplings were born — ranking #5,553 that year. As of 2026, Kipling ranks #10,889 for baby boys with 6 births, falling sharply (-33%). In total, more than 389 Kiplings have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1950s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Names that sound like Kipling
Phonetically similar names — useful when Kipling is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
- Coupling
- Killing
- Crippling
- Kipping
- Caplin
- Coplin
- Koplin
- Kiplinger
- Kaplan
- Cupping
- Culling
- Caplan
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Kipling
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About the name Kipling
Kipling is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1952 and has accumulated 389 births in the dataset. Kipling's peak popularity came in 2016 when it ranked #5,553. Use the chart and map above to compare Kipling's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 2016 →
- Names of the 2010s →
- Names starting with "K" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
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.