Elrik
A masculine name of Germanic origin meaning "noble ruler".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Elrik. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Elrik today is around 4 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elrik births was 2022 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elrik. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Elrik. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2022
5 babies that year
Average age
4
years old
2022 SSA rank
#12,894
Tracked since 2022
Popularity
Elrik: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Elrik by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Elrik during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Elrik
The name Elrik has its origins in the Germanic languages. It is a compound name derived from the Old Norse elements "elf" meaning "elf" or "supernatural being" and "ric" meaning "ruler" or "powerful". Thus, the name Elrik can be interpreted to mean "elf ruler" or "powerful supernatural being".
Elrik was a name used among the Norse and Germanic peoples during the Middle Ages. It was particularly popular in Scandinavia and parts of present-day Germany and the Netherlands. The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 9th and 10th centuries.
One of the earliest known individuals with the name Elrik was a Norse chieftain and warrior who lived in the late 9th century. He is mentioned in the Icelandic sagas as a leader of a band of Vikings who raided the coasts of Scotland and Ireland.
Another notable figure named Elrik was a German nobleman who lived in the 11th century. He was a member of the Bavarian aristocracy and served as a knight in the Holy Roman Empire under the reign of Emperor Henry IV.
In the 12th century, an Elrik is recorded as being a monk and scribe in a Benedictine monastery in Normandy, France. He is credited with transcribing and preserving several important religious texts and manuscripts from that era.
During the 13th century, an Elrik was a prominent merchant and trader in the Hanseatic League, a powerful economic alliance of merchant guilds and market towns in Northern Europe. He is said to have established trade routes and business connections across the Baltic Sea region.
In the 15th century, an Elrik was a renowned artist and sculptor based in the city of Lübeck, Germany. He is known for his intricate wood carvings and altarpieces that adorned several churches in the region.
Throughout its history, the name Elrik has maintained a strong association with the Germanic and Norse cultural heritage. While not as common today, it remains a unique and distinctive name with a rich historical background.
People
Elrik + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elrik as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Elrik: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elrik?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elrik going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Elrik a common name?
We classify Elrik as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elrik most popular?
The single biggest year for Elrik was 2022, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elrik is about 4 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Elrik in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elrik a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elrik in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Elrik still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elrik in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Elrik can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Elrik?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Elrik, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.