Kolson
Son of the narrow valley or forest glen.
Name Census estimates that about 1,799 living Americans carry the first name Kolson. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Kolson today is around 6 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Kolson births was 2024 (314 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Kolson. 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 Kolson with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Kolson is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 6 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.8K
~ 1 in 190,525 Americans
Peak year
2024
314 babies that year
Average age
6
years old
2024 SSA rank
#800
Tracked since 2002
Census
Kolson in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 620 people with the first name Kolson, which placed it at #17,656 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
#17,656
National first-name rank
People counted
620
620 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
84.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Kolson
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kolson is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.8%) and Hispanic (4.4%). 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 Kolson 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 Kolson at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 523
- Two or more races6.8% · 42
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 11
- Black or African American1.5% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 8
Popularity
Kolson: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Kolson from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 1,203 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Kolson 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 Kolson during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Kolsons live
The SSA's state-level files cover 31 states and territories. Texas, Ohio, Indiana recorded the most babies named Kolson, while Wisconsin, Maryland, Idaho recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 37 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Kolson
The given name Kolson is a relatively modern name that appears to have originated in the late 20th or early 21st century. Its precise roots and etymology are uncertain, but it is likely a combination of elements from various European languages and cultures.
One possible origin of Kolson is that it is derived from the Old Norse name Kolr, which means "coal" or "dark-haired." This name was popular among the Vikings and Scandinavian peoples during the Middle Ages. Over time, the name may have evolved and combined with the English suffix "-son," meaning "son of," creating the name Kolson.
Another potential source of Kolson is the German name Kolben, which means "club" or "mace." This name may have been adapted and anglicized over time, leading to the formation of Kolson. Alternatively, Kolson could be a creative fusion of the names Colin and Olson, both of which have their own distinct origins.
While there are no definitive historical records or ancient texts referencing the name Kolson specifically, its components can be traced back to various cultures and time periods. The earliest recorded examples of individuals bearing this name seem to be from the late 20th and early 21st centuries.
One notable figure with the name Kolson is Kolson Lee Yun, a South Korean professional baseball pitcher who currently plays for the Doosan Bears in the KBO League. He was born in 1995 and has been an integral part of the team's pitching rotation since his debut in 2017.
Another individual named Kolson is Kolson Moore, an American composer and musician known for his work in film and television. He has composed scores for various independent films and television shows, including the critically acclaimed series "The Affair" on Showtime.
In the literary world, Kolson Vashisht is an Indian author and screenwriter who has written several novels and scripts for Bollywood films. His works often explore themes of identity, relationships, and societal issues in contemporary India.
Kolson Basinger is an American artist and painter whose work has been exhibited in various galleries across the United States. His vibrant abstract paintings have received critical acclaim for their innovative use of color and texture.
Lastly, Kolson Petersen is a Norwegian entrepreneur and business executive who co-founded and serves as the CEO of a successful technology startup based in Oslo. His company has gained recognition for its innovative software solutions and has attracted investments from various venture capital firms.
While the name Kolson is relatively new and its precise origins remain uncertain, it has already made its mark in various fields and cultures around the world. As a unique and distinctive name, it is likely to continue gaining popularity and leaving its imprint on history.
People
Kolson + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Kolson 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
Kolson: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kolson?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,799 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Kolson 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 190,525 US residents.
Is Kolson a common name?
We classify Kolson as "Rare". It ranks above 93.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,812 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Kolson most popular?
The single biggest year for Kolson was 2024, when 314 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Kolson is about 6 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Kolson in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 620 people with the name Kolson, or 0.21 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #17,656 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 Kolson 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 Kolson?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Kolson leans strongly male. 607 people counted with this name were male (98.4%), compared with 10 female bearers (1.6%). 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 Kolson?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Kolson is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.8%) and Hispanic (4.4%). 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 Kolson most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Kolson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (523 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 Kolson in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Kolson a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Kolson 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 Kolson still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Kolson 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 Kolson 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 the name Kolson?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.