boy's name
Ricky
RIK-ee
- Origin Germanic
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 229,120
the United States
#949
2025 births
Ricky is a boy's name, the pet form of Richard or Ricardo, meaning strong ruler. Our records carry it only from 1925, and it peaked in 1958 at 13,424 births — an entirely twentieth-century name despite its ancient root.
- Ricky is a name of Germanic origin.
- Peaked in 1958, when 13,424 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 12,606 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1925.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Ricky over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1920s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1920s | 51 |
| 1930s | 208 |
| 1940s | 6,978 |
| 1950s | 79,644 |
| 1960s | 66,858 |
| 1970s | 22,309 |
| 1980s | 20,397 |
| 1990s | 13,546 |
| 2000s | 8,251 |
| 2010s | 4,991 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,856 |
What Ricky means
Ricky means strong ruler, or brave in rule, carried from Richard. The Germanic joins a word for power to one meaning hard or brave, so the sense is authority exercised with force.
Where Ricky comes from
Ricky is a diminutive of Rick, itself clipped from Richard — the Old Frankish Ricohard, ric, power or rule, joined to hard, brave. It can equally shorten Ricardo, the Spanish and Portuguese form, or Frederick and Eric, which end in the same element. Its life as a registered name is entirely twentieth-century: our records carry it only from 1925, and its steep rise through the 1950s follows the general American habit of registering pet forms as full names, alongside Larry, Jerry, Tony and Steve.
Ricky in use
Ricky peaked in the United States in 1958, when 13,424 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now charts in three of the seven markets we track — 949th in the United States on 263 births, 1271st in Canada and 2241st in England and Wales — across 229,120 lifetime births. Its parent name Richard, written up separately, holds 2,699,993 births, so the pet form carries under a tenth of the pair's total.
How popular is Ricky?
In 2025, Ricky was given to 263 babies in the United States, ranking #949 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Ricky is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Ricky
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Ricky also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Ricky over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Ricky in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Ricky
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Ricky — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Ricky
What does the name Ricky mean?
Strong ruler, carried from Richard.
Is Ricky short for Richard?
For Richard or Ricardo, and it can equally shorten Frederick or Eric, which end in the same element.
How old is the name Ricky?
As a registered name, entirely modern — our records carry it only from 1925.
How popular is Ricky?
949th in the United States, down from a 1958 peak of 13,424 births.
Is Ricky a girl's or a boy's name?
Ricky is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Ricky?
Ricky has 2 syllables.
Is Ricky a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Ricky currently ranks #949 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.