Richard

Richard: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “brave ruler”
Origin: Germanic
Say it: RICH-erd · 2 syllables
Used for: Boys

From Germanic elements meaning power or rule and brave or hardy. It was reinforced in England by Norman use and several medieval kings.

English names French names German names Names meaning brave Names meaning royalty Names meaning strength Classic names Royal names International names

How popular is Richard?

2024462 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Richard in 20241,539

2024 rank#232 boys

Peak year1946

Total US babies since 18802,585,535

Richard is fading: recent use is about 61% of its level ten years before.

Names like Richard

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Ricardobrave ruler · Spanish
Rickpowerful ruler · English
Rickeybrave ruler · English
Rikkibrave ruler · Germanic
Rickiepowerful ruler · Germanic
Rickipowerful ruler · Germanic
Dickbrave ruler · Germanic
Williamresolute protector · Germanic

Richard questions

What does the name Richard mean?

Richard means "brave ruler". It comes from Germanic. From Germanic elements meaning power or rule and brave or hardy. It was reinforced in England by Norman use and several medieval kings.

Is Richard a boy or girl name?

Richard is mainly a boy's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Richard?

1,539 US babies were named Richard in 2024. Its peak year was 1946.

How do you pronounce Richard?

Richard is usually pronounced RICH-erd.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.