Riggins
An English surname derived from the Old English word "rigge" meaning "ridge".
Name Census estimates that about 892 living Americans carry the first name Riggins. It is a predominantly male name (99.4% of registrations). The average person named Riggins today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Riggins births was 2023 (128 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Riggins. 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.
People living today
892
~ 1 in 384,254 Americans
Peak year
2023
128 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2024 SSA rank
#1,678
Tracked since 2007
Gender
Gender distribution for Riggins
Out of the 898 babies given the name Riggins since 1880, 99.4% 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.
Riggins as a male name
- Ranked #1,678 in 2024
- 100 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (128 births)
Riggins as a female name
- Ranked #18,563 in 2015
- 5 female births in 2015
- Peak: 2015 (5 births)
Popularity
Riggins: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Riggins from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 469 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
Riggins 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 Riggins during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Riggins' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 15 states and territories. Texas, Utah, Idaho recorded the most babies named Riggins, while Washington, South Carolina, Nebraska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 17 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Riggins
The given name Riggins is believed to have originated from the Old English language, with its roots dating back to the Anglo-Saxon period in the 5th to 11th centuries. The name is derived from the Old English word "ricg," which referred to a ridge or back, possibly indicating that the name initially described someone who lived on or near a ridge.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Riggins can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and tenants in England compiled in 1086. This suggests that the name was already in use among the Anglo-Saxon population before the Norman Conquest in 1066.
In the Middle Ages, the name Riggins appeared in various historical records and manuscripts, though its usage was relatively uncommon. One notable figure bearing this name was Riggins of Berkhamsted, a 13th-century English abbot who oversaw the construction of the Lady Chapel at St. Albans Cathedral.
During the Renaissance period, the name gained some popularity among the English gentry and landed families. Sir John Riggins (1558-1623) was a prominent landowner and Member of Parliament for Wiltshire during the reign of King James I.
In the 17th century, the Puritan movement in England led to a resurgence of biblical and virtue names, which may have contributed to the continued use of Riggins, as it was seen as a strong and virtuous-sounding name.
Another noteworthy figure bearing the name Riggins was William Riggins (1760-1826), an English clergyman and author who wrote several theological works and served as the rector of St. Mary's Church in Warwickshire.
In the 19th century, the name Riggins crossed the Atlantic to the United States, where it was adopted by some families of English descent. One prominent American with this name was John Riggins (1829-1906), a Union Army officer during the American Civil War who later became a successful businessman and philanthropist in California.
Over the centuries, the name Riggins has maintained its presence, albeit in a relatively modest capacity, across various English-speaking regions. While not among the most common given names, it has been consistently used throughout history, often associated with individuals of notable standing in their respective communities.
People
Riggins + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Riggins 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
Riggins: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Riggins?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 892 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Riggins 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 384,254 US residents.
Is Riggins a common name?
We classify Riggins as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 898 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Riggins most popular?
The single biggest year for Riggins was 2023, when 128 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Riggins is about 7 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Riggins a male name?
Yes, 99.4% of people registered as Riggins 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.