King m
English: from the vocabulary word for a monarch, bestowed, especially in America, with a hint of the notion that the bearer would have kingly qualities; cf. DUKE (SEE Duke) and EARL (SEE Earl). In some cases it may be a transferred use of the surname (originally a nickname or an occupational name given to someone who was employed in a royal household). Its frequency has increased recently among American Blacks, no doubt partly as a result of its being bestowed in honour of the civil rights leader Martin Luther King (1929–68).
First names dictionary. 2012.