Find out how popular the last name Rickard is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Rickard.

Rickard, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Rickard surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Rickard in America

Rickard is the 3886th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Rickard surname appeared 9,128 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Rickard.

We can also compare 2010 data for Rickard to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Rickard

The surname Rickard originated in England during the late medieval period. It is thought to have derived from the Old English given name Richard, which itself is derived from the Germanic elements "ric" meaning powerful and "hard" meaning brave or hardy. The name gained prominence in England following the Norman Conquest in 1066.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Rickard can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a census-like record compiled during the reign of King Edward I. It lists individuals such as William Rickard and Robert Rickard residing in counties like Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire at that time. The name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of 1327, suggesting its spread across various parts of England by the early 14th century.

One of the earliest notable figures with the surname Rickard was Sir John Rickard (c.1480-1556), a prominent English politician and landowner from Buckinghamshire. He served as a Member of Parliament for the borough of Wycombe during the reign of Henry VIII.

In the 16th century, the surname Rickard was also found in various spellings such as Rickerd, Rickerde, and Rickard. There are records of individuals like Thomas Rickarde, a landowner in the parish of Chetwode, Buckinghamshire, in the 1520s.

The Rickard surname has a strong association with the county of Buckinghamshire, where many families bearing this name were based for centuries. One of the earliest recorded place names associated with the surname is Rickards Hill, a location mentioned in historical records from the 16th century.

Another notable figure with the surname Rickard was Sir Andrew Rickard (1573-1638), an English merchant and Member of Parliament for the City of London during the early 17th century. He played a role in the establishment of the East India Company and was knighted by King James I in 1617.

In the 18th century, William Rickard (1700-1786) was a prominent English clergyman and author who served as the Archdeacon of Middlesex and wrote several works on theology and history.

The Rickard surname also has a connection to Ireland, where it is believed to have been introduced by English settlers during the Plantations of Ireland in the 16th and 17th centuries. One notable Irish figure with this surname was Michael Rickard (1828-1900), a prominent Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Kilmore from 1888 until his death.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Rickard

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Rickard.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Rickard was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Rickard has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Rickard was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Rickard, please contact us.

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