Dicky

♂ Boy

How to Pronounce Dicky

Pronounced DIK-ee /ˈdɪk.i/High

Meaning: Dicky is an affectionate diminutive of Richard, the Germanic name from ric ('ruler, power') and hard ('brave, hardy'), giving 'powerful ruler' or 'brave leader'. It runs through the old rhyming chain Rick to Dick to Dicky.Medium

In 30 seconds: Dicky is the playful pet form of Richard — 'powerful ruler' — that a good many mid-century parents wrote right on the birth certificate (said 'DIK-ee').

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Origin MediumEnglish, Germanic

MeaningDicky is an affectionate diminutive of Richard, the Germanic name from ric ('ruler, power') and hard ('brave, hardy'), giving 'powerful ruler' or 'brave leader'. It runs through the old rhyming chain Rick to Dick to Dicky.

U.S. rank (1980)#6502 ↘ Falling

1980 U.S. births5 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)

Peak year1947

Total births (all-time)≈ 975

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Dicky is a diminutive of Richard, one of the great Norman-imported names, formed from the Germanic elements ric, 'ruler' or 'power', and hard, 'brave' and 'hardy'. Medieval English turned Richard into Rick and then, by rhyme, into Dick, with Dicky the softened pet form given warmly to boys.

As a birth name it belonged to the informal mid-century, peaking around 1947 and fading as parents returned to the formal Richard by the nineteen-eighties. A Dicky today is likely a grandfather of the boomer era; the name reads firmly vintage and has not revived, though Richard endures.

Did you know? Dick became Rick's medieval rhyming nickname for Richard, and Dicky is its cozy -y extension; for a stretch of the mid-century it was given as a full legal name rather than just a household one.

Overall data confidence 75%

References — Dicky — pet form of Richard (ric + hard)

Variations

RichardRickeyDickie

Nicknames

DickRickRich

Famous Bearers

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If you like Dicky…

Richard— the formal parent name Dicky shortens

Rickey— a fellow -y pet form of Richard

Ricky— same Richard diminutive in a common spelling

Dickie— a near-identical spelling of the same pet name

Explore names like Dicky

By themerare vintage diminutive

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Dicky mean?

Dicky is a pet form of Richard, from the Germanic ric ('ruler, power') and hard ('brave'), meaning 'powerful ruler'.

How do you pronounce Dicky?

It's said DIK-ee /ˈdɪk.i/ — two syllables, stress on the first.

Is Dicky a boy or girl name?

Dicky is used as a boy's name.

How popular is Dicky?

Dicky has always been uncommon as a formal name, a mid-century pet form of Richard that has since faded.