Preston
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Meaning
from an English surname derived from place names meaning "priest town"
The story
Before Preston was a given name, it was a surname drawn from various English places. Those place names joined Old English preost and tun, giving the sense "priest town." The plural matters: no single modern Preston can claim to be the source of every family or bearer. Still, one city with the name offers a vivid return to the beginning. Its council describes the Preston Guild as a civic tradition held once a generation, built around ceremonies and processions made by trades, churches, community groups, and torchlight walkers. A name that traveled from place to surname to personal use thus meets a living place again, not as proof of origin but as an echo. Preston carries an old map inside it, while the Guild shows what a place name can gather around itself when residents take to the streets together.
How popular is Preston around the world?
In the United States, 7,987 babies were named Preston between 2020 and 2025.
Preston is on the official records of the United States, Canada, Ireland, England and Wales, South Australia and France.
United States
1 in 2,700
In the United States, 7,987 babies were named Preston between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Preston peaked in the 2000s and the 2010s in nearly equal measure. Preston went to 2,475 US babies in 2015 and 1,141 in 2025, 46% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 4,700
In Canada, 78 boys named Preston were born in 2024, the 414th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Ireland
1 in 11,000
In Ireland, 5 boys named Preston were born in 2025, the 577th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
England and Wales
1 in 17,000
In England and Wales, 34 boys named Preston were born in 2025, the 914th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 boy was registered as Preston in 2017.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
France
1 in 32,000
In France, about 20 boys named Preston were born in 2025, ranked 1,586th among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
Austria
last on record 2021
Preston is not on the 2025 record for Austria, which publishes every first name down to a single birth, so the name was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 1 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
New Zealand
last on record 2018
Preston is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Poland
last on record 2017
Preston is not on the 2025 record for Poland, where names given fewer than 2 times in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Scotland
last on record 2023
Preston is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina and Puerto Rico: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Preston
Most people given the name Preston in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Preston · Names that go with Preston · Climbers and fallers
The Preston deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Preston truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Preston fits with your family’s names and surname.
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