Rorik
A masculine name of Norse origin meaning "famous ruler".
Name Census estimates that about 302 living Americans carry the first name Rorik. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Rorik today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rorik births was 2021 (34 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rorik. 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
302
~ 1 in 1,134,948 Americans
Peak year
2021
34 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,393
Tracked since 2008
Popularity
Rorik: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rorik from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 160 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
Rorik 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 Rorik during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Roriks live
Origin
Meaning and history of Rorik
The name Rorik has its origins in Old Norse, the language spoken by the Vikings and ancient Scandinavians. It is derived from the Old Norse elements "hróðr", meaning "fame" or "glory", and "ríkr", meaning "ruler" or "mighty". Together, the name Rorik can be interpreted to mean "famous ruler" or "gloriously mighty".
The name was fairly common among the Norse and Germanic peoples during the Viking Age, which lasted from the late 8th century to the late 11th century. It was particularly prevalent in the regions of modern-day Scandinavia, including Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, as well as in areas of Northern Germany and the Netherlands, where the Vikings had established settlements and trading outposts.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rorik can be found in the Gesta Danorum, a 12th-century work of Danish history written by the scholar Saxo Grammaticus. In this text, Rorik is mentioned as the name of a legendary Danish king who ruled in the 6th century.
Another notable historical figure bearing the name Rorik was Rorik of Dorestad, a Norse Viking chieftain who lived in the late 9th century. He was a prominent leader in the region of Frisia, which is now part of the Netherlands, and played a significant role in the Viking raids and settlements in that area.
In the 10th century, a Norwegian chieftain named Rorik of Lade was a powerful figure in the region of Trøndelag, Norway. He was an ally of the Norwegian king Haakon the Good and played a crucial role in the Christianization of Norway.
A more recent historical figure with the name Rorik was Rorik Ertsrudson, a Norwegian explorer and whaler who lived in the late 19th century. He was one of the first Europeans to explore and map the coastline of the Antarctic continent.
Another notable bearer of the name was Rorik Bredal, a Norwegian writer and historian who lived from 1891 to 1969. He is best known for his historical novels set in Viking Age Scandinavia, which helped to popularize the study of Norse culture and mythology.
People
Rorik + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rorik 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
Rorik: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rorik?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 302 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rorik 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 1,134,948 US residents.
Is Rorik a common name?
We classify Rorik as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 304 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rorik most popular?
The single biggest year for Rorik was 2021, when 34 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rorik is about 8 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 Rorik in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rorik a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rorik 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 Rorik still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rorik 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 Rorik 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 Americans are named Rorik?
See how many people share the name Rorik on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.