How to say it
FRED · rick
/ˈfrɛd.rɪk/
Masculine
Frederick
Peaceful ruler
What it means
Germanic, from frid ('peace') plus ric ('ruler'), so 'peaceful ruler.'
Frederick joins the Germanic frid, 'peace,' to ric, 'ruler': a ruler who keeps the peace. Holy Roman Emperors and Prussian kings bore it, and the great abolitionist Frederick Douglass gave it American moral weight. It is riding the great-grandfather revival alongside Theodore and Arthur. Fred, Freddie, and the German Fritz are the shorts.
Popularity over time
peaked at #33 in 1880, currently #435 in 2025.
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving
Heads-up notes
- Nickname
Fred, Freddie, and Fritz all come from it.
- Pop culture
Frederick Douglass; Frederick the Great of Prussia.
Who's worn it
Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.
- Frederick Douglass American abolitionist, orator, and writer
- Frederick the Great 18th-century king of Prussia
Spelling variants
- Frederik
- Friedrich
- Federico
Names with the same feeling
See Frederick from another angle
By meaning
By style