Gerrit
Masculine · “Brave with the spear”
Gerrit is the Dutch form of Gerard, and Dutch has worn it down thoroughly: the Germanic ger is a spear and hard is brave, and four syllables of Old High German have become two. It arrived in America with New Netherland.
How old is the name Gerrit?
Gerrit first appears in US birth records in 1881 — 144 years ago. The typical Gerrit alive today was born around 1976, making them about 49 years old. About 1,900 people named Gerrit are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Gerrit most popular?
Gerrit peaked in 1881, reaching #781 nationally. Today it ranks #5608, 4,827 places below that high. See the whole 1881 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Gerhard to Gerrit
The story of Gerrit
Gerard of Brogne and Gerard Majella made the name Christian, and it was ordinary across the Low Countries and Germany from the Middle Ages. Dutch settlers brought Gerrit to New Netherland from the 1620s, and it stayed in Dutch-American families in New York and New Jersey for centuries — Gerrit Smith, the abolitionist who funded John Brown, was born in Utica in 1797. The name's American peak in 1881 belongs to the later nineteenth-century Dutch migration to Michigan and Iowa rather than to the colonial families, and it has been rare since 1930.
Meaning
Brave with the spear
From the Germanic Gerhard, from ger, a spear, and hard, brave or hardy. The reading is settled and both elements are transparent. Dutch reduced Gerhard to Gerrit and then further to Gert and Geert; the doubled r marks the short vowel in Dutch spelling.
How the name formed
- Gerhard
- Gerard
- Gerrit
Related forms: Gerrit · Gerhard · Gerard · Gerrit · Gert
Pronouncing Gerrit
GHER-it
Two syllables, stress on the first. Dutch gives the g a throat fricative English does not have and trills the r; American speakers say GAIR-it with a hard g.
Nicknames for Gerrit
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1881
- Most boys named
- 191649 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #781reached in 1881
- Change vs 2023
- +33.3%16 in 2025, from 12
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Gerrit in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Gerrit in Dutch — same name
- Gerhard in German — related form
- Gerard in English — related form
- Gerrit in Afrikaans — same name
- Gert in Danish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Michigan.
Gerrits among us
people named Gerrit are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 106,755 born in 2025 was named Gerrit
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Gerrit sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Gerrit beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Gerrit in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The Germanic meaning is settled and both elements are documented.
- Gerry is available as an entirely ordinary English short form.
- It has a real Dutch-American colonial history.
- The Dutch g is not an English sound and will be flattened.
- Gerrit, Garrett and Gerard are close enough to be confused.
- It is unfamiliar in English-speaking countries and will be spelled out.
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Gerrit
Masculine · #5608 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Gerrits are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,900 people named Gerrit are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Gerrit in 2025?
- Gerrit ranks #5608 among US boy names in 2025, with 16 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Gerrit?
- About 1 in every 106,755 US boys born in 2025 was named Gerrit — 16 in all.
- Will my child share the name Gerrit with classmates?
- Gerrit will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Gerrit
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rolland#5608 · Llewellyn#5608 · Arlie#5608 · Vinson#5608 · Georgie#5608 · Wally#5608 · Berl#5608 · Webb#5608
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Gerrit? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Gerrit and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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