Kimberly comes from Kimberley, the South African diamond-mining town named after Lord Kimberley, whose title goes back to an English village meaning "Cyneburg's clearing", from a woman's name that means "royal fortress". The name became an American sensation after World War II and sat in the top 10 through the 1960s and 1970s. Kimberly ranked 58th in 2000, peaked at 54 in 2007 and has dropped to number 303 in 2025.