Ketric
An uncommon masculine name of unknown origin, possibly derived from Germanic elements.
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Ketric. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ketric today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ketric births was 1978 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ketric. 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 Ketric. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1978
6 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
1980 SSA rank
#6,791
Tracked since 1978
Popularity
Ketric: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ketric from the 1970s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ketric 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 Ketric during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ketric
The name Ketric has its origins in the ancient Germanic languages and is believed to have first emerged in the 5th century AD during the period of the great migrations of Germanic tribes across Europe. It is derived from the Old Germanic root word "ket", which meant "brave" or "fierce", and the suffix "-ric", meaning "ruler" or "leader".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ketric can be found in the Frankish Chronicles, a historical record of the Merovingian dynasty that ruled over the Franks from the 5th to the 8th century. It mentions a Frankish warrior named Ketric who fought alongside King Clovis I in the Battle of Vouillé in 507 AD, which marked the decisive victory of the Franks over the Visigoths.
During the Middle Ages, the name Ketric was particularly popular among the noble families of the Holy Roman Empire and the various Germanic kingdoms that emerged after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. One notable bearer of the name was Ketric of Metz, a Frankish nobleman who lived in the 9th century and served as a trusted advisor to King Lothair I of the Carolingian dynasty.
In the 11th century, a German knight named Ketric von Sternberg gained fame for his exploits during the Crusades, where he fought alongside the armies of the Holy Roman Emperor and participated in the capture of Jerusalem in 1099. His bravery and prowess in battle earned him the epithet "the Fearless".
Another prominent figure with the name Ketric was a 13th-century Danish prince and military commander who played a crucial role in the defense of the Kingdom of Denmark against the Swedish and German invaders. He is remembered for his decisive victory at the Battle of Lyndanisse in 1259, which secured the independence of the Danish kingdom.
In more recent times, one of the most famous bearers of the name Ketric was a German philosopher and theologian who lived in the 16th century during the Protestant Reformation. Ketric von Wittenberg was a close associate of Martin Luther and a staunch defender of the reformist movement, authoring several influential treatises on theology and biblical interpretation.
People
Ketric + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ketric as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ketric: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ketric?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ketric 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Ketric a common name?
We classify Ketric as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ketric most popular?
The single biggest year for Ketric was 1978, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ketric is about 49 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 Ketric in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ketric a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ketric 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 Ketric still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ketric 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 Ketric 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 common is the name Ketric?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.