Rickey
Feminine · “strong in rule”
Rickey is given to boys far more often — 61,717 boys against 674 girls since 1880. See Rickey as a boy name
Rickey is a familiar form written on certificates as a name in its own right, and the record holds it for daughters as well as sons. It is also a drink, named after a real man who drank one every day in the same Washington bar.
How old is the name Rickey?
Rickey first appears in US birth records in 1928 — 97 years ago. The typical Rickey alive today was born around 1958, making them about 67 years old. About 600 people named Rickey are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Rickey most popular?
Rickey peaked in 1947, reaching #1633 nationally. See the whole 1947 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Ricohard to Rickey
The story of Rickey
A rickey is spirit, lime and soda with no sugar, and it is named after Colonel Joe Rickey, a Missouri-born Democratic lobbyist who held court at Shoomaker's bar in Washington in the eighteen-eighties. The bartender made him one every morning — bourbon originally, with the juice and shell of half a lime — and regulars began asking for Joe Rickey's drink. Rickey himself disliked the association, complaining that a lifetime of political work had been reduced to a beverage. The gin version arrived a decade later and became the standard. He was also, briefly, the largest importer of limes in the United States, which suggests he made his peace with it commercially if not otherwise. The drink is one of the very few American cocktails with a documented named origin.
Meaningscholars disagree
strong in rule, at two removes
The formal name joins Germanic elements meaning rule and hard or brave. How that produced this short form is the ordinary English business of clipping and adding an ending, and whether a given bearer was registered from the formal name or independently is not recorded.
How the name formed
- Ricohard
- Richard
- Rick
- Rickey
Pronouncing Rickey
RIK-ee
Two syllables with the stress at the front. The e before the y is silent and distinguishes the spelling without changing anything.
Nicknames for Rickey
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
- 1928
- Most girls named
- 195836 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1633reached in 1947
- Change vs 1987
- 0.0%6 in 1990, from 6
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.
Rickeys among us
people named Rickey are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Rickey sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Rick comes off it at once and needs no explanation anywhere.
- It works for a child of either sex, which the record confirms.
- The formal name stands behind it for occasions that want one.
- Ricky is commoner and will be written for it by default.
- It reads as a familiar form, and people will ask what it stands for.
- It is strongly associated with one mid-century generation of American men.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Rickey to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Rickey? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Rickey
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Rickeys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 600 people named Rickey are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Rickey in 2025?
- Rickey is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Rickey with classmates?
- Rickey will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More R names
The most-given names starting with R, all years combined.
Ruth#173 · Rebecca#349 · Rachel#250 · Rose#114 · Ruby#64 · Robin#704 · Rita#1285 · Rhonda#6116
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Rickey? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Rickey and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle