'Neasden' means the nose-shaped hill.
It comes from Old English nēos, nose, and dūn, hill, and refers to a well-defined landmark of the area. It was recorded as Neasdun in 939 and known as Needsden in 1750; the present spelling came later. The station opened in 1880 as Kingsbury and Neasden, became Neasden and Kingsbury in 1910, and plain Neasden in 1932, the year Kingsbury station opened.