Aberdeen Township is a township in Monmouth County, New Jersey. The township was incorporated on 23 February 1857 as "Matavan Township", and it was renamed to "Matawan" in 1882 and to "Aberdeen" in 1977. Its name change to "Aberdeen" was a part of the town's efforts to separate its legacy from that of Matawan, as well as to make it notable for having the first slot in the alphabetical list of New Jersey's municipalities. In 2016, Aberdeen had a population of 18,374 people.