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Colson

Boy name · 37 babies recorded · 1974–2025

Colson: 37 babies born in Scotland since 1974, given to boys, peaking at 7 births in 2021.

Colson is a modern English surname-turned-first-name, originally a patronymic meaning "son of Col" – Col itself being a short form of Nicholas, from the Greek Nikolaos, "victory of the people." The name gained literary cachet through Colson Whitehead, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of *The Underground Railroad* and *The Nickel Boys*, while musician Colson Baker – better known as Machine Gun Kelly – brought it into pop culture. Though no major places bear the name directly, the Scottish surname Cowan shares a similar root in "Col." Once rare as a first name, Colson has climbed steadily in Scotland since the 2010s, appealing to parents who like the sturdy, surname-style feel of names like Jackson or Hudson, but with a softer finish.