Erik
Derived from the ancient Norse name Eiríkr, meaning "absolute ruler".
Name Census estimates that about 148,999 living Americans carry the first name Erik. It sits at #476 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Erik today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Erik births was 1980 (4,955 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Erik. 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
- • Although Erik is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 666 girls registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
149K
~ 1 in 2,300 Americans
Peak year
1980
4,955 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
2024 SSA rank
#476
Tracked since 1911
Gender
Gender distribution for Erik
Out of the 157,566 babies given the name Erik since 1880, 99.6% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Erik as a male name
- Ranked #476 in 2024
- 644 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1980 (4,914 births)
Erik as a female name
- Ranked #14,305 in 2008
- 7 female births in 2008
- Peak: 1980 (41 births)
Popularity
Erik: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Erik from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 36,608 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Erik 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 Erik during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Eriks live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Erik, while Wyoming, Vermont, Delaware recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 3,033 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Erik
Erik is a traditionally Scandinavian name, derived from the Old Norse words "ari" meaning "warrior" and "rik" meaning "ruler" or "wealthy." The name is believed to have originated in the Viking Age, which spanned from the late 8th century to the late 11th century. It was a popular name among the Norse people who inhabited modern-day Sweden, Norway, Denmark, and Iceland.
The name Erik is first recorded in the 9th century Ynglinga saga, an Old Norse prose work that details the legendary rulers of Sweden. One of the earliest documented individuals with the name was Erik Anundsson, a semi-legendary Swedish king who ruled in the 7th century.
In the 11th century, Erik the Victorious was a Swedish king who played a significant role in consolidating the Swedish kingdom and promoting Christianity. He was born around 945 AD and ruled from 970 to 995 AD.
Another notable Erik was Erik the Red, the famous Norse explorer who is credited with founding the first European settlement in Greenland around 985 AD. He was born in Norway around 950 AD and later settled in Iceland before his explorations in Greenland.
In the 12th century, Erik Jedvardsson was a Swedish king who ruled from 1156 to 1167 AD. He is known for his efforts to strengthen the power of the Swedish monarchy and his involvement in the ongoing conflicts between the Church and the monarchy.
Erik XIV was a 16th-century Swedish king who reigned from 1560 to 1568 AD. He is known for his efforts to promote the Reformation in Sweden and his tragic downfall, which led to his imprisonment and eventual death in 1577.
These are just a few examples of notable historical figures who bore the name Erik. Throughout the centuries, the name has remained popular in Scandinavian countries and has also gained popularity in other parts of the world due to its strong historical and cultural associations.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Erik
People
Erik + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Erik 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
Erik: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Erik?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 148,999 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Erik 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 2,300 US residents.
Is Erik a common name?
We classify Erik as "Common". It ranks above 99.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 157,566 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Erik most popular?
The single biggest year for Erik was 1980, when 4,955 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Erik is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Erik a male name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Erik 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.
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.