Kip
A diminutive form of the masculine name Christopher, meaning "Christ-bearer".
Name Census estimates that about 7,521 living Americans carry the first name Kip. It is a predominantly male name (98.2% of registrations). The average person named Kip today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kip births was 1965 (432 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kip. 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 Kip with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Kip is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 154 girls registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
7.5K
~ 1 in 45,573 Americans
Peak year
1965
432 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,456
Tracked since 1935
Census
Kip in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 6,761 people with the first name Kip, which placed it at #3,195 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#3,195
National first-name rank
People counted
6.8K
6,761 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
2.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
86.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kip
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kip is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.0%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Kip described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Kip at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.5% · 5,848
- Black or African American6.0% · 403
- Two or more races3.3% · 223
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 120
- Hispanic or Latino1.6% · 111
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 56
Gender
Gender distribution for Kip
Kip leans heavily male at 98.2% of total registrations, but 154 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Kip as a male name
- Ranked #1,456 in 2024
- 124 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1965 (419 births)
Kip as a female name
- Ranked #8,596 in 1980
- 7 female births in 1980
- Peak: 1956 (17 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kip leans strongly male. 6,499 people counted with this name were male (96.2%), compared with 256 female bearers (3.8%).
Popularity
Kip: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kip from the 1930s through to the 2020s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 2,708 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kip 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 Kip during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kips live
The SSA's state-level files cover 38 states and territories. California, Michigan, Ohio recorded the most babies named Kip, while Maryland, Massachusetts, Alabama recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 119 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kip
The name Kip originates from the Dutch language and is a diminutive form of the name Kipper, which is derived from the Middle Dutch word "kippen" meaning "to hatch". It was initially used as a nickname for children or as a term of endearment, particularly in reference to a young or small person.
The earliest recorded use of the name Kip dates back to the late 16th century, appearing in Dutch records and literature. It gained popularity in the Netherlands and surrounding regions during the 17th and 18th centuries, reflecting the cultural influence of the Dutch Golden Age.
In terms of historical references, the name Kip does not appear prominently in ancient texts or religious scriptures. However, it has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history.
One of the earliest recorded figures with the name Kip was Kip Van Burmania (1585-1644), a Dutch military engineer and architect who designed fortifications and structures across the Netherlands during the Eighty Years' War.
Another prominent individual was Kip Rhinelander (1808-1876), an American lawyer and politician from New York. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from 1835 to 1837.
In the realm of literature, Kip Masters (1920-2011) was an American novelist and playwright known for his works exploring themes of race and social justice, such as "Bright Leaf" and "Blessed Are the Meek".
The name Kip also gained recognition in the field of sports, with Kip Keino (born 1940), a renowned Kenyan athlete and Olympic champion in track and field events, most notably winning gold medals in the 1968 and 1972 Olympic Games.
Lastly, Kip Wilson (1923-2003) was an American actor and stuntman, best known for his work in Western films and television shows, often portraying cowboys and stunt performers.
These individuals, spanning different eras and professions, exemplify the diverse backgrounds and contributions associated with the name Kip throughout history.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Kip
People
Kip + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kip 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
Kip: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kip?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 7,521 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kip 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 45,573 US residents.
Is Kip a common name?
We classify Kip as "Rare". It ranks above 97.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 8,619 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kip most popular?
The single biggest year for Kip was 1965, when 432 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kip is about 49 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kip in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 6,761 people with the name Kip, or 2.24 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #3,195 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Kip in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Kip?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kip leans strongly male. 6,499 people counted with this name were male (96.2%), compared with 256 female bearers (3.8%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Kip?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kip is White at 86.5%. The next largest groups are Black (6.0%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Kip most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Kip in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.5% (5,848 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Kip in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kip a male name?
Yes, 98.2% of people registered as Kip 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 Kip still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kip 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 Kip 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.
How many people have Kip as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.