Fun Facts About the Name Kip
- More than 8 thousand babies named Kip: U.S. records list 8,723 babies given the name Kip from 1880 through 2025. Even 154 girls received the name Kip - about 1 girl for every 56 boys.
What Does the Name Kip Mean?
Kip is an English masculine name that began as a short form rather than as a word with a meaning of its own. It is most often explained as a pet form of Christopher, and through that link it takes on that name's sense, "Christ-bearer." Christopher goes back to the Greek Khristophoros, built from Khristos ("Christ," literally "anointed one") and pherein ("to bear").
A second and unrelated source is the English surname Kip, which is Dutch in origin. It comes from kip, the Dutch word for a hen or chicken, and probably began as a nickname or as an occupational name for someone who kept or sold poultry. Because the given name can come either from a clipped first name or from a family surname, it does not have one settled meaning.
Kip Name History & Origins
Kip belongs to a familiar English pattern: a longer name is worn down to a single syllable, as with Bet from Elizabeth or Ned from Edward. Christopher was used in medieval England as the name of a popular saint, and like most common names it threw off a crowd of short forms. Chris and Kit are still widespread; Kip is a rarer one, and in old records a bearer of the name cannot always be traced back to Christopher with certainty.
The surname Kip is chiefly Dutch. A Dutch-born engraver, William Kip, worked in London around 1600, cutting maps and book illustrations, and the surname appears in English records from about that time. Turning a family surname into a child's first name became common in the English-speaking world during the 18th and 19th centuries, and that is one route by which a name like Kip could move from a family name into use as a given name.
How Popular is the Name Kip?
Kip recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1965. Its best rank was #379 in 1965.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1980 | #8,596 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #5,374 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1966 | #7,071 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1965 | #3,641 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1964 | #5,217 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1963 | #4,700 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1962 | #4,393 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1961 | #5,582 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1960 | #4,961 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1959 | #4,821 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1958 | #4,348 | 9 | 0.0004% |
| 1957 | #3,397 | 13 | 0.0006% |
| 1956 | #2,876 | 17 | 0.0008% |
| 1955 | #3,925 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1954 | #5,449 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1953 | #6,100 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1948 | #5,630 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1947 | #5,017 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,626 | 104 | 0.0061% |
| 2024 | #1,456 | 124 | 0.0072% |
| 2023 | #1,380 | 135 | 0.0079% |
| 2022 | #1,451 | 125 | 0.0072% |
| 2021 | #1,649 | 101 | 0.0058% |
| 2020 | #1,794 | 84 | 0.0049% |
| 2019 | #1,666 | 97 | 0.0054% |
| 2018 | #1,947 | 76 | 0.0042% |
| 2017 | #1,946 | 74 | 0.0040% |
| 2016 | #1,965 | 74 | 0.0039% |
| 2015 | #2,664 | 46 | 0.0024% |
| 2014 | #2,499 | 50 | 0.0026% |
| 2013 | #3,302 | 33 | 0.0017% |
| 2012 | #3,212 | 35 | 0.0018% |
| 2011 | #4,589 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 2010 | #4,612 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 2009 | #4,518 | 22 | 0.0011% |
| 2008 | #4,206 | 24 | 0.0012% |
| 2007 | #4,304 | 23 | 0.0011% |
| 2006 | #3,485 | 30 | 0.0015% |
| 2005 | #3,777 | 25 | 0.0013% |
| 2004 | #4,701 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 2003 | #3,162 | 30 | 0.0015% |
| 2002 | #3,057 | 30 | 0.0015% |
| 2001 | #3,465 | 25 | 0.0013% |
| 2000 | #3,188 | 27 | 0.0014% |
| 1999 | #2,699 | 32 | 0.0017% |
| 1998 | #2,370 | 37 | 0.0019% |
| 1997 | #2,524 | 32 | 0.0017% |
| 1996 | #2,094 | 41 | 0.0022% |
| 1995 | #1,941 | 44 | 0.0023% |
| 1994 | #1,915 | 44 | 0.0023% |
| 1993 | #2,111 | 38 | 0.0019% |
| 1992 | #1,592 | 56 | 0.0028% |
| 1991 | #1,375 | 68 | 0.0034% |
| 1990 | #1,426 | 62 | 0.0030% |
| 1989 | #1,508 | 55 | 0.0027% |
| 1988 | #1,219 | 70 | 0.0037% |
| 1987 | #1,328 | 56 | 0.0030% |
| 1986 | #1,341 | 54 | 0.0029% |
| 1985 | #1,029 | 80 | 0.0043% |
| 1984 | #864 | 104 | 0.0058% |
| 1983 | #1,102 | 66 | 0.0037% |
| 1982 | #902 | 99 | 0.0055% |
| 1981 | #776 | 126 | 0.0070% |
| 1980 | #811 | 118 | 0.0066% |
| 1979 | #861 | 102 | 0.0059% |
| 1978 | #782 | 117 | 0.0071% |
| 1977 | #861 | 98 | 0.0060% |
| 1976 | #758 | 120 | 0.0076% |
| 1975 | #767 | 117 | 0.0075% |
| 1974 | #678 | 144 | 0.0092% |
| 1973 | #651 | 150 | 0.0096% |
| 1972 | #657 | 149 | 0.0092% |
| 1971 | #635 | 168 | 0.0095% |
| 1970 | #595 | 185 | 0.0100% |
| 1969 | #542 | 210 | 0.0117% |
| 1968 | #481 | 248 | 0.0143% |
| 1967 | #440 | 293 | 0.0168% |
| 1966 | #433 | 309 | 0.0173% |
| 1965 | #379 | 419 | 0.0225% |
| 1964 | #439 | 333 | 0.0167% |
| 1963 | #497 | 260 | 0.0128% |
| 1962 | #529 | 228 | 0.0110% |
| 1961 | #603 | 173 | 0.0081% |
| 1960 | #606 | 167 | 0.0078% |
| 1959 | #623 | 153 | 0.0072% |
| 1958 | #570 | 185 | 0.0087% |
| 1957 | #542 | 205 | 0.0095% |
| 1956 | #536 | 196 | 0.0093% |
| 1955 | #541 | 188 | 0.0091% |
| 1954 | #661 | 121 | 0.0059% |
| 1953 | #698 | 105 | 0.0053% |
| 1952 | #706 | 99 | 0.0051% |
| 1951 | #708 | 96 | 0.0051% |
| 1950 | #713 | 93 | 0.0052% |
| 1949 | #827 | 68 | 0.0038% |
| 1948 | #876 | 61 | 0.0035% |
| 1947 | #964 | 55 | 0.0030% |
| 1946 | #873 | 57 | 0.0035% |
| 1945 | #989 | 42 | 0.0031% |
| 1944 | #1,275 | 28 | 0.0021% |
| 1943 | #1,420 | 25 | 0.0018% |
| 1942 | #1,911 | 15 | 0.0011% |
| 1941 | #2,413 | 10 | 0.0008% |
| 1940 | #1,852 | 15 | 0.0013% |
| 1939 | #2,119 | 12 | 0.0011% |
| 1938 | #3,361 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1935 | #2,830 | 8 | 0.0008% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Kip Shapes Your Personality and Life?
EXTREMES in fortune, health and spirituality. You are very versatile, idealistic and intuitive. You either enjoy great success or suffer abject misery. The solution is service to others. Use your leadership abilities for humanity and not for self-glorification. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Kip's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Kip's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.