Origins of the King surname

What does the name King mean?

The origin of the King surname is English and Scottish, and is thought to stem from the Old English description of a tribal leader 'cyning'. It may not necessarily refer to a King of the realm or someone of royal descent (though it has been believed to have rarely been given to illegitimate offspring of royals), but could also refer to someone who was connected to the King's household or played the part of monarch in a play or pageant. This was particularly related to harvest festivals.

Alternative variations of the name King

King, Kinge, Kings, Kang, Keng

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Delve deeper into the King family's history

OrkneyShetlandHighlandsWestern IslesGrampianTaysideCentralStrathclydeFifeLothianBordersDumfriesNorth East 2081North West 983Isle of Man 74Yorkshire 3799East Midlands 1624West Midlands 2275East 5998London 17764South East 8266South West 2257South Wales 798Mid Wales 165West Wales 14North Wales 82Republic of IrelandNorthern Ireland

In 1921, most Kings lived in london

Census records trace your ancestors through each generation, so you can follow where your relatives lived through each decade.

150,000 King Travel & migration records
670,000 Kings found in all Census records

Interesting facts about King

How common is your surname?

35th most common surname in the UK

We have for the King surname. The oldest one dates back to 1086.

Who were Kings most likely to marry?

Our tell us which families married Kings.

What are the most common King first names?

John

William

Mary

Elizabeth

Our tell us the names of King family members
Man with milk churns and census card collage
Census records provide incredible detail on names, ages, marital statuses, occupations and more.

Common jobs for Kings

Men and women often performed different types of jobs, so these are displayed by gender to maintain their historical accuracy.

Commmon female occupations for Kings in 1921

Dressmaker

2,993

Laundress

2,109

Domestic Servant

1,709

General Servant Domestic

1,649

Living On Own Means

1,353

Commmon male occupations for Kings in 1921

Agricultural Labourer

4,121

General Labourer

2,975

Carpenter

2,134

Farm Labourer

2,050

Coal Miner

1,717

We found over 770,000 family trees with the King surname

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