Humanverse

Richard vs Richrd

American parents have registered 2,587,082 Richards since 1880, against 400 Richrds. Richard is still ahead, with 1,505 babies in 2025.

Babies given each name, 1880–2025

Births per year: Richard against Richrd, 1880 to 2025 0 15k 30k 45k 60k 1880 1900 1920 1940 1960 1980 2000 2020

Richard Richrd

Each line is every baby given the name that year, girls and boys added together — the only count that means the same thing for both names. A line breaks where the name fell below five babies in a year — the point at which the SSA stops publishing it — rather than being drawn through a figure nobody published. A single published year in a gap shows as a dot.

Who was ahead

Richard has been the commoner name in every year either was published, 1880 to 2025. The lead has never changed hands.

The closest they came was 1984, when Richard had 15,713 and Richrd had 15.

Side by side

  Richard Richrd
Total US births 2,587,082400
Most in one year 58,99021
Babies in 2025 1,505under 5
Estimated living today 1.4 million330
Median age today 6353
Peak year 19461969
Best rank 5th boys1,810th boys
Rank in 2025 234thunranked
First recorded 18801948
Girls / boys 9,530 / 2,577,5520 / 400

A rank is a position within one sex’s list for one year, so the two rank rows are not subtracted from one another and the winning column is not marked on them. The living figure is a life-table estimate, not a count.

Which name is older

Half of the Richards alive today are over 63; half the Richrds are over 53. That is 10 years between them: two names in use at the same time, worn by two different generations.

Compare something else

Related comparisons

Social Security Administration birth records, 1880–2025, public domain. Full histories: Richard and Richrd.