Rurik

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Boy · Old Norse

Rurik

Say it: ROO-rik

Try it with your surname

Meaning

From Old Norse Hróðríkr: hróðr 'fame' and ríkr 'ruler'.

Certainscholars agree on this meaning.

Carried east by the Varangians, it named the ruling dynasty of Rus'.

Its wave through time

Rare in the records

In the United States

0123418801900192019401960198020002020Peak 2015per million babies of that sex
  • 16 babies given this name since 2008
  • At its height in 2015, about 1 in 318,900 boys
  • Fewer than 5 babies a year in 2020

Through the ages

  1. The Viking and Anglo-Saxon Age700 to 1100
  2. The High and Late Middle Ages1100 to 1450

Used by

Old NorseSwedishRussian

The family of the name

Old NorseHrœrekr
RussianRyurik
DanishRørik

Famous bearers

  • Rurik, founder of the Rurikid dynasty of Rus'

Names worth a look

Where this comes from

  • Medieval Slavic chronicles and charters
  • Royal and noble genealogies
  • United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source

Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.

Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.