Richaud
A masculine name of French origin signifying wealth or power.
Name Census estimates that about 6 living Americans carry the first name Richaud. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Richaud today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Richaud births was 2006 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Richaud. 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 Richaud. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
6
~ 1 in 57,125,723 Americans
Peak year
2006
6 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2006 SSA rank
#11,745
Tracked since 2006
Popularity
Richaud: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Richaud 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 Richaud during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Richaud
The name Richaud has its origins in the medieval French language and culture, dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Germanic root words "ric" meaning powerful or rich, and "wald" meaning ruler or commander. The name was initially used as a descriptive title or nickname for a person of high social standing or wealth.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Richaud can be found in the French epic poem "La Chanson de Roland" from around 1100 AD. In this literary work, Richaud is mentioned as a knight who fought alongside the legendary Roland at the Battle of Roncevaux Pass in 778 AD. This suggests that the name was already in use during the Carolingian era of the 8th and 9th centuries.
In the 12th century, a Benedictine monk named Richaud de Toul (1120-1187) gained fame for his religious writings and his service as the abbot of the monastery of Saint-Evre in Toul, France. His work "De Corpore et Sanguine Domini" (On the Body and Blood of the Lord) was an influential treatise on the Eucharist.
During the 14th century, a French nobleman named Richaud de Cambronne (1310-1375) achieved notoriety for his military exploits in the Hundred Years' War. He served as a knight and commander under King John II of France and was renowned for his bravery and strategic skills on the battlefield.
In the 16th century, a French Protestant leader named Richaud de Pierrefeu (1520-1588) played a significant role in the French Wars of Religion. He was a staunch supporter of the Huguenot cause and fought alongside the Prince of Condé against the Catholic forces of the French crown.
Another notable figure bearing the name Richaud was the French architect and engineer Richaud de Prony (1755-1839). He was best known for his work on the construction of the Pont de la Concorde bridge in Paris and for his contributions to the development of early mechanical calculators.
While these are just a few examples, the name Richaud has a rich historical legacy that spans several centuries and includes individuals from various walks of life, including religious leaders, military commanders, and notable figures in architecture and engineering.
People
Richaud + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Richaud as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Richaud: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Richaud?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Richaud 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 57,125,723 US residents.
Is Richaud a common name?
We classify Richaud as "Very Rare". It ranks above 22.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Richaud most popular?
The single biggest year for Richaud was 2006, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Richaud is about 20 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 Richaud in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Richaud a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Richaud 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 Richaud still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Richaud 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 Richaud 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 Richaud?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.