Kingsley
Kingsley is a boys' name of English origin meaning “king's meadow.” It ranked #983 in the United States in 2025. Kingsley combines 'king' and 'leah' (meadow), originally a place name meaning the king's clearing.
how do you pronounce Kingsley?
KINGZ-lee
Hear it spoken aloud with our AI pronunciation tool.
what does Kingsley mean?
The name Kingsley means “king's meadow.” It comes from the English language tradition.
Kingsley combines 'king' and 'leah' (meadow), originally a place name meaning the king's clearing. The name has distinguished literary associations through novelists Kingsley Amis and Charles Kingsley. It projects a regal quality tempered by the pastoral 'ley' ending, creating a name that is commanding yet approachable.
where does the name Kingsley come from?
Wiktionary and Wikipedia agree Kingsley derives from Old English Cyningesleah, combining cyning (king) with leah (wood, clearing, or meadow) — literally the king's wood or clearing.
the history of Kingsley
Wikipedia identifies it as a locational name that was later adopted as a given name; nothing retrieved here traces its subsequent history beyond that transfer.
how popular is this name?
| Year | Rank |
|---|---|
| 2024 | #983 |
| 2023 | #849 |
| 2022 | #738 |
| 2021 | #702 |
| 2020 | #628 |
Source: SSA National Baby Names Dataset
what are the nicknames and variants of Kingsley?
Nicknames
who are famous people named Kingsley?
- Kingsley Amis (English novelist, Lucky Jim)
- Ben Kingsley (English actor, Gandhi)
what names are similar to Kingsley?
what names go well with Kingsley?
Sibling names that share Kingsley's rhythm and register without echoing it too closely.
Last reviewed April 30, 2026 · Curated by HushName editorial
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