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Hudson

English place-name and surname
"Hugh's son"
Clare Green
By Clare Green
Updated Mon Sep 02 2024

Hudson Origin and Meaning

The name Hudson is a boy's name of English origin meaning "Hugh's son".

Hudson has risen quickly up the charts over the past 30 years, getting a lot of its style value from New York's Hudson River. That makes it a nature name and a place name that's also got the fashion gloss of New York City.

The Hudson River was named for 17th century British explorer Henry Hudson, who also gave him name to Canada's Hudson Bay. Hudson has long been a prominent surname. Along with Henry, there was also heartthrob Rock, director Hugh, the musical Hudson brothers, and Kate Hudson today.

As a first name, Hudson has been given to several celebrity children, including the sons of Robert Herjavec, Marcia Gay Harden, Gena Lee Nolan, and Drew Lachey.

Hudson literally means 'son of Hudd', which was a nickname for both Hugh and Richard in the Middle Ages. Streamlined spelling Hud was the name of the macho title character of an iconic Paul Newman film; John Mellencamp has a son named Hud.

James Barbour pulled a gender switch when he named his daughter Hudson in 2008.

Along with its popularity in the US, Hudson also ranks in the Top 100 in other English-speaking countries. Its popularity has not, however, extended to other European countries, many of which have laws against using surnames as first names.

# 21 in the US

Hudson Rank in US Top 1000

# 117 on Nameberry

Hudson Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Hudson Popularity

Famous People Named Hudson

  • Hudson David YangAmerican actor
  • Hudson LoweAnglo,Irish Governor of St. Helena and "jailer" of Napoleon Bonaparte
  • (James) Hudson TaylorEnglish missionary to China
  • Hudson StuckBritish,American mountain climber
  • Hudson Felipe GonçalvesBrazilian footballer
  • Hudson Rodrigues dos SantosBrazilian footballer
  • Hudson Santos de SouzaBrazilian middle distance runner
  • Hudson MaximAmerican inventor of smokeless gunpowder
  • (Wilmot) Hudson FyshAustralian aviator and businessman
  • Henry HudsonEnglish explorer
  • (Hudson) Riley Hawkson of skateboarder Tony Hawk
  • Hudson Scheel Harden (b. 2004)son of actress Marcia Gay Harden and Thaddaeus Scheel; twin of sister Julitta Dee Scheel
  • Hudson Oliverson of comedian Jonn Oliver
  • Hudson Lee Hulse (b. 2006)son of actress Gena Lee Nolin and ice hockey player Cale Hulse
  • Hudson Kirk (b. 2010)son of actress Greer Robson and Scott Kirk
  • Hudson Nicholas Lachey (b. 2010)son of singer Drew Lachey
  • Hudson Stone (b. 2011)son of Lindsay Price and chef Curtis Stone
  • Hudson Evangelista (b. 2011)son of actor Allen Evangelista
  • Hudson James Sebastianson of singer Guy Sebastian
  • Hudson Sawa (b. 2014)son of actor Devon Sawa
  • Hudson Harold Hardwickson of NFL player Nick Hardwick
  • Hudson Frommson of beauty queen Beth Hood and songwriter Andrew Fromm
  • Hudson Robert Herjavec (b. 2018)son of TV personalities Robert Herjavec and Kym Johnson; twin of sister Haven Mae
  • Jake Hudson Cropperson of musician Jason Cropper of Weezer

Hudson in Pop Culture

  • "Hudson Hawk" 1991 film and its main character
  • Hudson Thomascharacter in The Sims series
  • Finn Hudsoncharacter in "Glee"
  • Hudsonsong by the band Vampire Weekend
  • HudsonNew York, city
  • Hudson TaylorIrish/English band
  • Hudson Riverin New York
  • Hudson Baylarge body of water in North,Eastern Canada
  • The Fabulous Hudson Hornetcharacter in Disney Pixar's 'Cars'

Hudson in Nameberry Blog Posts