Popularity: The name Karson ranked 688th in popularity for males of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics.

Narrative: This surname, unlike most names with a ''-son'' ending (such as Johnson, meaning ''son of John''), did not refer to the personal name of the bearer's father.

A 13th-century form of the name (''de Carsan'') hints at a derivation from a place name. However, no place with this name has been located, so the meaning of the name remains a mystery.