Entry № 1294 · English origin

Kimberly Kimberly — Meaning, Origin & Baby Name Popularity

/ KIM-ber-lee /
Gender
Girl
Origin
English
Meaning
"Royal forest meadow (peaked #4 in 1966; Kimberly Bryant)"
Syllables
3
Rank · US 2025
№ 230
First recorded
Modern (English)

A name that means "royal forest meadow (peaked #4 in 1966; kimberly bryant)".

Kimberly is from an Old English place-name — Cyneburg's lēah ("royal one's wood/meadow"). **The name surged into American popularity after the 1959 film *Kimberly Jim*; ranked in the US top 10 from 1964 to 1975, peaking at #4 in 1966 and 1967**. **Kimberly Bryant (born 1967)** — American electrical engineer; founder of Black Girls Code (2011), the nonprofit that has taught coding to over 30,000 Black girls. **Kim Ng (born 1968)** — first woman and first East Asian to be hired as general manager of a Major League Baseball team (Miami Marlins, 2020).

Featured throughout late-20th-century American media.

Royal forest meadow. Peaked at #4 in 1966; Kimberly Bryant's Black Girls Code.

The name in its native script.

Kimberly
Transliteration
Kimberly
Pronunciation
/ ˈkɪm.bər.li /
Root
Grammatical form

Where Kimberly stands.

Current rank · 2025
№ 230 in the U.S.
All-time peak
№ 4 in 1966
Babies named Kimberly · last year
1,300 in the U.S.
First entered SSA top-1000
1880
Rank, 1995–2025 Lower = more popular
№25 №75 №150 №250 1995 2005 2015 2020 2025 PEAK · #4 NOW · #230

Kimberlys before her.

Real people
Kimberly Bryant
Founder of Black Girls Code.
born 1967
Kim Ng
First female MLB general manager.
born 1968
In fiction
Kimberly
Mighty Morphin Power Rangers.
1993

Names connected to Kimberly.

The number behind Kimberly.

1

The Pioneer

Kimberly reduces to one — the number of royal meadow.

Why families chose this name.

"Royal meadow. Eight letters. Kimberly."
Jennifer · Mother of one · Indianapolis