Richard
Boy nameRichard has been given to 2,587,082 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1946 and currently ranks #234 for boys (2025).
Meaning & origin /ˈɹɪt͡ʃ.əd/
From Middle English Rycharde, from Old French Richard, from Medieval Latin Richardus, Ricohardus, from Frankish *Rīkahard, from Proto-Germanic *Rīkaharduz, a construction of *rīks (“king, ruler”) +‎ *harduz (“hard, brave”). Cognate with Old High German Rīcohard (“Richard”). Partially related to rich. A hypothetical Old English equivalent *Rīċheard would also yield an identical "Richard" in Modern English, though it is unknown if the Old English equivalent existed.
Origin: Germanic languages
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
2,587,082
Peak year
1946 (58,990 babies)
Rank in 2025
#234 for boys
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -44%
Gender split
0% girls / 100% boys
Famous people named Richard
Richard Wagner
German composer (1813–1883)
Richard Nixon
President of the United States from 1969 to 1974 (1913–1994)
Richard Feynman
American theoretical physicist (1918–1988)
Richard Stallman
American software freedom activist, short story writer and computer programmer, founder of the GNU project
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Richard.
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