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Eric

{{Short description|Male given name}}

{{Other uses}}

{{pp-pc1}}

{{Infobox Given Name Revised

| name = Eric, Erich, Erik, Erick, Erikk, Eirik, Eiríkur

| image=Eric little by little title page.jpg

| image_size=200

| caption=Title page from 1891 edition of the book Eric, or, Little by Little, whose popularity is credited with increasing the use of the name Eric in Britain

| pronunciation={{IPAc-en|lang|ˈ|ɛr|ɪ|k}} {{respell|ERR|ik}}
{{IPA|fr|eʁik|lang}}
{{IPA|ro|ˈerik|lang}}
Erik
{{IPA|sv|ˈêːrɪk|lang}}
{{IPA|nl|ˈeːrɪk|lang|nl-Erik.ogg}}
Erich
{{IPA|de|ˈeːʁɪç|lang|de-Erich.ogg}}

| gender = Male

| meaning = "sole ruler",
"eternal ruler"

| variant = Eiríkr

| region = Germania

| language = North Germanic

| name day = Sweden & Norway: 18 May

| origin = Old Norse

| footnotes=

| related names =

}}

The given name Eric, Erich, Erikk, Erik, Erick, Eirik, or Eiríkur is derived from the Old Norse name Eiríkr {{IPA|non|ˈɛiˌriːkz̠|}} (or Eríkr {{IPA|non|ˈeˌriːkz̠|}} in Old East Norse due to monophthongization).

The first element, ei- may be derived from the older Proto-Norse *aina(z), meaning "one, alone, unique",Entries "Æiríkʀ", "Æi-", in: [http://www.sprakochfolkminnen.se/om-oss/arkiv-och-samlingar/nordiskt-runnamnslexikon.html Nordiskt runnamnslexikon] (2002) by Lena Peterson at the Swedish Institute for Linguistics and Heritage (Institutet för språk och folkminnen). [https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/EIN Entry "EIN"] at Nordic Names. Retrieved 19 June 2017. as in the form Æ∆inrikr explicitly, but it could also be from *aiwa(z) "everlasting, eternity",[http://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Erik Entry "Erik"] at Nordic Names Wiki. Retrieved 1 February 2013. as in the Gothic form Euric.T. Perrenot, La toponymie burgonde, Payot, 1942, p. 211. The second element -ríkr stems either from Proto-Germanic *ríks "king, ruler" (cf. Gothic reiks) or the therefrom derived *ríkijaz "kingly, powerful, rich, prince"; from the common Proto-Indo-European root *h₃rḗǵs.Entries "Æiríkʀ", "Ríkʀ" and "-ríkʀ" in [http://www.sprakochfolkminnen.se/om-oss/arkiv-och-samlingar/nordiskt-runnamnslexikon.html Nordiskt runnamnslexikon] (2002) by Lena Peterson at the Swedish Institute for Linguistics and Heritage (Institutet för språk och folkminnen). The name is thus usually taken to mean "sole ruler, autocrat" or "eternal ruler, ever powerful".{{cite book|title=The Study of Names: A Guide to the Principles and Topics|year=1992|publisher=Greenwood Press|location=Westport, CT|page=11|url=https://www.questia.com/read/15138768/the-study-of-names-a-guide-to-the-principles-and|author=Frank Nuessel|access-date=|archive-date=2017-07-06|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170706075502/https://www.questia.com/read/15138768/the-study-of-names-a-guide-to-the-principles-and|url-status=dead}} Eric used in the sense of a proper noun meaning "one ruler" may be the origin of Eriksgata, and if so it would have meant "one ruler's journey".[https://archive.org/details/svensketymologis00hell Swedish etymological dictionary, by Elof Hellquist (1922), p. 121] The tour was the medieval Swedish king's journey, when newly elected, to seek the acceptance of peripheral provinces.

Eric is one of the most commonly used Germanic names in the United States, along with Robert, William, Edward and others.

{{Cite web|url=https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/decades/century.html|title = Top Names over the Last 100 Years}}

The most common spelling across Fennoscandia and in the Netherlands is Erik. In Norway, another form of the name (which has kept the Old Norse diphthong) Eirik ({{IPA|no|ˈæ̂ɪrɪk|lang}}) is also commonly used.In November 2008, there were 20,000 men named Erik in Norway (appr. 0.9% of the male pop.) and 13,000 named Eirik (0.8%). Source: Statistics Norway, http://www.ssb.no/navn/) The modern Icelandic version is Eiríkur ({{IPA|is|ˈeiːˌriːkʏr̥|lang}}),[http://www.behindthename.com/php/view.php?name=eric Behind The Name][http://www.etymonline.com/index.php?term=eric Etymology Online][http://www.ssa.gov/OACT/babynames/ United States Social Security Database] while the modern Faroese version is Eirikur.

In Estonia and Finland (where Fenno-Swedish remains an official minority language), the standard Nordic name form Erik is found, but it may also be spelled phonetically as Eerik ({{IPA|fi|ˈeːrik|lang}}), in accordance with Finnic language orthography, along with a slew of other unique Balto-Finnic variant forms including Eerikki, Eero, Erki and Erkki.[https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Eerik Eerik], Nordic Names[https://www.behindthename.com/name/eerik Eerik], behindthename.com[https://www.babynamespedia.com/meaning/Eero Eero], babynamespedia.com[https://www.babynamespedia.com/meaning/Eerikki Eerikki], babynamespedia.com

Although the name was in use in Anglo-Saxon England, its use was reinforced by Scandinavian settlers arriving before the Norman conquest of England. It was an uncommon name in England until the Middle Ages, when it gained popularity, and finally became a common name in the 19th century. This was partly because of the publishing of the novel Eric, or, Little by Little by Frederic Farrar in 1858.

The Latin form of the name is Euricus or Erīcus ({{IPA|la-x-medieval|ɛˈriː.kus|lang|link=yes}}), which was also adopted into Old Swedish usage (for example, cf. 15th century Kalmar Swedish historian Ericus Olai).[https://www.nordicnames.de/wiki/Ericus Ericus], Nordic Names Whence come the Greek forms Ερίκος (Eríkos) or Ερρίκος (Erríkos) (both {{IPA|el|eˈri.kos|pron}}), in addition to the direct Nordic borrowing Έρικ (Érik).[http://www.names-n-gifts.com/onoma.asp?onomaID=2975 Έρικ], names-n-gifts (in Greek)[http://www.names-n-gifts.com/onoma.asp?onomaID=3041 Ερρίκος], names-n-gifts (in Greek)

Éric ({{IPA|fr|e.ʁik|lang}}) is used in French, Erico in Italian, Érico in Portuguese. (Note some phonetically simplified modern forms may be conflated with descendants of cognate name Henry via Henrīcus, Henrik, from Proto-Germanic Haimarīks, sharing the stem *rīks.)

Among Slavic languages, most using the Latin alphabet borrow Erik, but there also exists Polish Eryk. The name is adapted into Cyrillic as Russian Э́йрик (Éyrik) or Э́рик (Érik), and Ukrainian Е́рік (Érik). The Baltic languages use forms such as Latvian Ēriks and Lithuanian Erikas.[https://www.behindthename.com/name/eryk Eryk], behindthename.com[https://www.behindthename.com/name/e23riks Ēriks], behindthename.com[https://www.behindthename.com/name/erikas Erikas], behindthename.com Meanwhile in Kazakhstan, Ерік (Erik) is used.

And in Germany, Eric, Erik and Erich are used.[http://www.gfds.de/vornamen/beliebteste-vornamen/ Gesellschaft für deutsche Sprache (GfdS): Beliebteste Vornamen]. Gfds.de. Retrieved 1 February 2013. In South America, the most common spelling is Erick.

In Norway, Sweden and Finland, the name day for derivations of Erik and Eirik is 18 May, commemorating the death of Saint King Eric IX of Sweden, founder of the royal House of Eric.

The feminine derivative is Erica or Erika.

Royalty

=Visigothic=

  • Euric, king of the Visigoths between 466 and 484

=Danish=

=Norwegian=

=Swedish=

Given name

Eric, Erich, and Erik are very common given names. The below list is a sampling. See {{lookfrom|Eric}}, {{lookfrom|Erich}}, and {{lookfrom|Erik}} for comprehensive lists.

=A–E=

=F–L=

=M–Z=

Fictional characters

Surname

See also

References

{{Reflist}}

Category:English-language masculine given names

Category:English masculine given names

Category:Masculine given names

Category:Danish masculine given names

Category:Dutch masculine given names

Category:German masculine given names

Category:Norwegian masculine given names

Category:Scandinavian masculine given names

Category:Swedish masculine given names