June 16 is National Dick Day

National Richard Day is observed on June 16 every year. This day is special for you to celebrate with people named Richard. The name Richard is used all over the world. It is a common English, French, and German male name. It is also used in more than two languages, particularly Germanic, such as Norwegian, Danish, Swedish, Icelandic, and Dutch, as well as other languages including Irish, Scottish, Welsh, and Finnish. Read on to learn more about this name that has been popular across the world.

History of National Richard Day

The meaning of this name is ‘brave ruler’ since it derives from the Germanic elements ric ‘ruler, mighty’ and hard ‘brave, hardy.’ It was the Normans who introduced this name to Britain, and it has been very common and popular since that time. Its popularity grew since three kings of England including Richard I the Lionheart, one of the leaders of the Third Crusade in the twelfth century.
During the Late Middle Ages, the most common names were John, William, Robert, and Thomas, and Richard was among them, of course. Through to the modern era, it remained fairly popular, peaking in the U.S. in the 1940s and the U.K. a bit later, and steadily declining since that time. Richard is cognate with variants of the name in different European languages, such as the Catalan ‘Ricard,’ Swedish ‘Rickard,’ and the Italian ‘Riccardo,’ among others.
Famous bearers of the name Richard include two German opera composers called Richard Wagner and Richard Strauss, as well as British explorer Sir Richard Burton, U.S. President Richard Nixon, U.S. physicist Richard Feynman, British actor Richard Burton, and U.S. musician Little Richard. Richard is a boy’s name that is still quite popular in the Christian religion. It is also commonly used in Spain and Portugal as Ricardo.