Richard

This article is about the given name. For other uses, see Richard (disambiguation).

Richard
17th-century portrait of Richard the Lionheart, a 12th-century King of England
Pronunciation	/ˈrɪtʃərd/
Gender	Male
Origin
Word/name	Proto-Germanic
Meaning	powerful leader
Other names
Nickname(s)	Rich, Rick, Dick, Dickie, Riccardo, Richie, Ricardo, Rico, Ricky

The Germanic first or given name Richard derives from German, French, and English "ric" (ruler, leader, king) and "hard" (strong, brave), and it therefore means "powerful leader". Nicknames include Dick, Dickie, Rich, Richie, Rick, Ricky, and others.

Richard is a common name in many Germanic languages, including English, German, Norwegian, Danish, Swedish and Dutch.

People named Richard

Rulers and aristocrats

• Richard, Duke of Burgundy (died 921)
• Richard I, Duke of Normandy (933-996)
• Richard II, Duke of Normandy (died 1026), son of Richard I of Normandy
• Richard I of Capua (died 1078), King of Capua and Count of Aversa
• Richard fitz Gilbert (before 1035 – c. 1090), Norman lord involved in the conquest of England
• Richard I of England or Richard the Lionheart (1157–1199)
• Richard, 1st Earl of Cornwall (1209–1272), elected King of Germany
• Richard de Clare, 6th Earl of Gloucester (1222–1262)
• Richard Óg de Burgh, 2nd Earl of Ulster (1259–1326)
• Richard Orsini (died 1304), Count palatine of Cephalonia and Zakynthos, Count of Gravina, Bailli of Achaea
• Richard FitzAlan, 10th Earl of Arundel (c. 1306 – 1376), English military leader
• Richard FitzAlan, 11th Earl of Arundel (1346–1397), English military commander
• Richard II of England (1367–1400)
• Richard Neville, 5th Earl of Salisbury (1400–1460), Yorkist leader in the Wars of the Roses
• Richard of York, 3rd Duke of York (1411–1460), a principal participant in the Wars of the Roses
• Richard Neville, 16th Earl of Warwick (1428–1471), wealthy English magnate and major protagonist in the Wars of the Roses
• Richard III of England (1452–1485)
• Richard of Shrewsbury, 1st Duke of York (1473 – c. 1483), who would have been Richard IV of England if he had lived
• Richard Boyle, 1st Earl of Burlington (1612–1698), Lord High Treasurer of Ireland and a cavalier
• Richard Jones, 1st Earl of Ranelagh (1641–1712), Irish peer, and politician both in the Parliaments of England and Ireland
• Richard Savage, 4th Earl Rivers (c. 1660 – 1712), soldier and noted rake
• Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington (1694–1753), instrumental in the revival of Palladian architecture
• Richard Grenville-Temple, 2nd Earl Temple (1711–1779), British politician and associate and brother-in-law of William Pitt
• Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 2nd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1797–1861), noted for squandering his great wealth
• Richard Temple-Nugent-Brydges-Chandos-Grenville, 3rd Duke of Buckingham and Chandos (1823–1889), British soldier, politician and administrator
• Richard Wellesley, 1st Marquess Wellesley (1760–1842), Anglo-Irish Governor-General of India, Foreign Secretary in the British Cabinet and Lord Lieutenant of Ireland, brother of the 1st Duke of Wellington

In politics and government

• Richard Acland (1906–1990), one of the founders of the British Common Wealth Party and the Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament
• Richard Keith "Dick" Armey (born 1940), American politician, former member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Texas's 26th congressional district.
• Richard "Dick" Cheney (born 1941), Vice President of the United States under George W. Bush
• Richard Clarence "Dick" Clark (born September 14, 1928), former Senator from Iowa
• Richard Court (born 1947), Australian politician, former Premier of Western Australia
• Richard Cromwell (1626–1712), son of Oliver Cromwell, and his successor as Lord Protector of England
• Richard J. Daley (1902–1976), mayor of Chicago
• Richard M. Daley (born 1942), American former state senator and mayor of Chicago, son of Richard J. Daley
• Richard Hatfield (1931–1991), Canadian politician, Premier of New Brunswick
• Richard Johnson (judge) (born 1937), President of the Irish High Court
• Richard Mentor Johnson (1780–1850), Ninth Vice President of the United States, serving in the administration of Martin Van Buren.
• Richard "Dick" Lugar (born April 4, 1932), former Senator from Indiana
• Richard Nixon (1913–1994), only President of the United States to resign from office
• Richard Rush (1780–1859), United States Attorney General and Secretary of the Treasury
• Richard Stockton (1764–1828) United States Senator from New Jersey

Business people

• Richard L. Bloch (born 1929), American investor, real estate developer, banker, and philanthropist.
• Richard Branson (born 1950), British businessman and founder of the Virgin Group of companies
• Richard DeVos (born 1926), American businessman and co-founder of Amway
• Richard Jacobs (1925–2009), real estate businessman and owner of the Cleveland Indians baseball team
• Richard Rawlings (born 1969), star of American television show Fast N' Loud, owner of Gas Monkey garage, Gas Monkey Bar N' Grill and Gas Monkey Live
• Richard Velazquez (born 1973), PepsiCo Executive and first automotive designer at Porsche AG (Germany) of Puerto Rican descent
• Richard Warren Sears (1863–1914), co-founder of Sears, Roebuck and Company, and considered a promotional genius

Religious figures

• Saint Richard (disambiguation)
• Richard Baxter (1615 – 1691) English Puritan church leader, poet, hymn-writer.
• Richard of Dover (died 1184), Benedictine monk and Archbishop of Canterbury
• Richard Foxe (c. 1448 – 1528), Bishop of Exeter, Bath and Wells, Durham, and Winchester, Lord Privy Seal, and founder of Corpus Christi College, Oxford

In music

Composers

• Richard D. James (born 1971), British composer and electronic musician, records music as Aphex Twin, among other monikers.
• Richard Strauss (1864–1949), German composer and conductor
• Richard Wagner (1813–1883), German composer, writer, conductor and theatre director

Singers and musicians

• Richard "Big Daddy Ritch" Anderson, lead vocalist for American red dirt metal band Texas Hippie Coalition
• Richard Ashcroft (born 1971), former singer with The Verve
• Richard Butler (born 1956), lead singer of the Psychedelic Furs
• Richard Carpenter (born 1946), one half of The Carpenters
• Richard Manuel (1943–1986), pianist and vocalist of The Band
• Ringo Starr (born 1940), real name Richard Starkey, drummer of The Beatles
• Richard Wright (1943–2008), keyboard player for Pink Floyd

Actors

• Richard Dean Anderson (born 1950), American actor
• Richard Armitage (born 1971), English actor
• Richard Attenborough (1923–2014), English actor, director, producer and entrepreneur
• Richard Ayoade (born 1977), English comedian, actor, writer and director
• Richard Belzer (born 1944), American actor, author, and stand-up comedian
• Richard Burbage (1568–1619), English actor and theatre owner
• Richard Burton (1925–1984), Welsh actor
• Richard Alva "Dick" Cavett, (born 1936), American television talk show host
• Richard Chamberlain (born 1934), American actor
• Richard Wagstaff "Dick" Clark (November 30, 1929 – April 18, 2012) was an American radio and television personality
• Richard Curtis (born 1956), British screenwriter, music producer, actor and film director. One of Britain's most successful comedy screenwriters
• Richard Dreyfuss (born 1947), American actor
• Richard Gere (born 1949), American actor
• Richard Harris (1930–2002), Irish actor, singer-songwriter, theatrical producer, film director and writer
• Richard Jaeckel (1926–1997), American actor
• Richard Kind (born 1956), American actor
• Richard Madden (born 1986), Scottish actor
• Richard Anthony "Cheech" Marin (born 1946), American actor and comedian, known for the comedy duo Cheech & Chong
• Richard Pryor (1940–2005) an American stand-up comedian and actor
• Richard Roundtree (b. 1942), American actor
• Peter Sellers (1925–1980) Born Richard Henry Sellers, British actor
• Richard Schulefand (1923–1987), American actor and comedian professionally known as "Dick Shawn"
• Richard Simmons (1913–2003), American actor
• Richard Simmons (born 1948), American fitness personality and actor
• Richard Speight, Jr. (born Sept. 4, 1970) American actor
• Richard Wayne "Dick" Van Dyke (born December 13, 1925) is an American actor, comedian, writer, and producer

Explorers

• Richard R. Arnold (born 1963), American astronaut
• Richard Francis Burton (1821–1890), British geographer, explorer, translator, writer, soldier, orientalist, cartographer, ethnologist, spy, linguist, poet, fencer and diplomat
• Richard E. Byrd (1888–1957), U.S. Navy rear admiral, aviator and explorer
• Richard Masters (aka William Marsters), English sailor, cooper, trader and explorer
• Richard "Dick" Rutkowski, diving medicine pioneer

Military figures

• Richard Howe, 1st Earl Howe (1726–1799), British naval commander in the American War of Independence and the French Revolutionary Wars
• Richard Taylor (1826–1879), American Civil War Confederate general
• Richard "Dick" Marcinko (born 1940), U.S. Navy SEAL commander and Vietnam War veteran

In sports

• Richard "Dick" Attlesey (1929–1984), American hurdler
• Richard "Dick" Ault (1925–2007), American Olympian
• Richard "Rink" Babka (born 1936), American discus thrower
• Richard "Dick" Barber (1910–1983), American long jumper
• Richard Chelimo (1972–2001), Kenyan long-distance runner
• Richard "Dick" Davis (born 1946), American football player
• Richard "Dick" Davis (born 1938), American football player
• Richard Freitag (born 1991), German ski jumper
• Richard Gasquet (born 1986), French tennis player
• Richard Jordan (American football) (born 1972), American football player
• Richard Kilty (born 1989), English sprinter
• Richard Kingi (born 1989), Australian-New Zealand Rugby Union player
• Richard Krajicek (born 1971), Dutch professional tennis player, Wimbledon winner in 1996
• Richard Limo (born 1980), Kenyan long-distance runner
• Richard Mateelong (born 1983), Kenyan runner
• Richard Medlin (born 1987), American football player
• Richard Nerurkar (born 1964), British long-distance runner
• Richard Newland (1713–1778), English cricketer
• Richard Petty (born 1937), former NASCAR driver
• Richard Sears (1861–1943), winner of seven consecutive U.S. tennis championships
• Richard Sherman (born 1988), Defensive back for the Seattle Seahawks
• Rich Stotter (born 1945), American football player
• Richard Swann (born 1991), American professional wrestler
• Richard "Dick" Tayler (born 1948), New Zealand long-distance runner
• Richard Thompson (born 1985), Trinidadian sprinter
• Richard Todd (born 1953), American football player in the NFL

Scientists

• Richard Dawkins (born 1941), English ethologist, evolutionary biologist and author
• Richard Feynman (1918–1988), American Nobel Prize-winning physicist
• Richard D. James (born 1952), American mechanician and materials scientist
• Richard Leakey (born 1944), politician, paleoanthropologist and conservationist

Other

• Richard Assman (born 1934), Canadian gas station owner who became famous as "Dick Assman"
• Richard Garriott (born 1961), video game developer and entrepreneur
• Richard Maury (1882–1950), American naturalized Argentine engineer
• Richard Sorge (1895–1944), Soviet military intelligence officer
• Richard von Hegener (1905–1981), primary organizer of Action T4 Nazi euthanasia program

Cognates/transliterations

In Altaic languages

• Azerbaijani: Riçard
• Japanese: リチャード (Richado)
• Korean: 리처드
• Turkish: Reşad, Reşat, Rişar

In Indo-European languages

Germanic

• Afrikaans: Riekert, Ryk
• Dutch: Rijkert, Rikkert, Richard, Rick
• Icelandic: Ríkharð, Ríkharður
• Low German: Ri(c)kert, Richard
• Scandinavian: Rickard, Richard, Rikard, Ríkarður

Latin

• Catalan and Occitan: Ricard
• French: Richard
• Italian: Riccardo
• Latin: Richardus
• Portuguese: Ricardo
• Spanish: Ricardo

Celtic

• Breton: Richarzh
• Cornish: Richard
• Irish: Risteárd, Riocard
• Scottish Gaelic: Ruiseart
• Welsh: Rhisiart

Slavic

• Croatian: Rikard
• Czech: Richard
• Polish: Ryszard
• Russian: Ричард (Richard)
• Slovene: Rihard
• Ukrainian: Річард (Richard)

Other

• Armenian: Հռիքարտոս (Hṙikartós)
• Esperanto: Rikardo
• Greek: Ριχάρδος (Richárdos)
• Latvian: Ričards, Rihards
• Lithuanian: Ričardas
• Persian: ریچارد (Ritchard)

In Afroasiatic languages

• Arabic: ريتشارد (Rytshrd, Ritshrd, Rytshard, Ritshard)
• Hebrew: ריצ'רד (Richard)

In Uralic languages

• Finnish: Rikhard
• Hungarian: Richárd
• Saami: Rikkar

In Other languages

• Basque: Rikard
• Chinese: 理查德 (Lĭchádé)

Short forms

• Cornish: Hicca
• Czech: Ríša
• Dutch: Ries
• English: Rick, Rich, Dick, Dickie, Rik, Ric
• Estonian: Riho
• Esperanto: Rikĉjo
• Finnish: Riku
• Hungarian: Ricsi, Ricsike, Rics
• Icelandic: Rikki
• Latvian: Rič
• Lithuanian: Ryčka
• Polish: Rysio, Rysiek, Ryś
• Portuguese: Rico, Ric
• Slovak: Rišo, Riško, Riči
• Spanish: Cayo (Guatemala)
• Greek: Στούκος (Stoúkos)

Pet forms

• English: Ricky, Rickie, Rikki, Richie, Richi, Richy, Richu, Rich, Dick, Dickie, Ritchie

References

• Meaning of Richard (English)
• Meaning of Richard (French)

See also

• Richarda
• Richardis (given name)