Flint is the English word for the hard gray stone that strikes sparks, so the name means "flintstone" or "hard stone" and carries a sense of toughness. It was first a place name and surname, familiar from Flint, Michigan, and reached boys through tough-guy characters such as Captain Flint in Treasure Island. As a given name Flint peaked at number 1709 in 2017 and ranks number 2293 in 2025.