| Christopher | Richard | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Bearer of Christ | — |
| Origin | Greek | — |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | KRIS-tuh-fer | — |
| Syllables | 3 | — |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 1984 (60,021) | 1946 (58,870) |
| In 2025 | 4,748 | 1,505 |
| Trend | Declining | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Christopher | Richard |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 32,696 | 9,993 |
| 2010s | 102,156 | 26,747 |
| 2000s | 203,372 | 48,582 |
| 1990s | 360,287 | 94,876 |
| 1980s | 554,863 | 154,745 |
| 1970s | 475,423 | 202,804 |
| 1960s | 237,144 | 373,907 |
| 1950s | 78,333 | 535,461 |
| 1940s | 15,865 | 477,476 |
| 1930s | 2,731 | 330,502 |
| 1920s | 2,862 | 222,599 |
| 1910s | 1,960 | 74,603 |
| 1900s | 484 | 10,675 |
| 1890s | 668 | 7,572 |
| 1880s | 752 | 7,010 |
Christopher comes from the Greek Christophoros, “bearing Christ.” St Christopher, patron of travellers, is said to have carried the Christ child across a river.
Richard is a Germanic name from ric (“ruler, power”) and hard (“brave, strong”), so roughly “brave ruler.” The Normans carried it to England, where it was borne by three kings — including Richard I, “the Lionheart.”
Christopher is more popular than Richard today: about 4,748 US babies were given the name Christopher in 2025, compared with 1,505 named Richard.
In US records, Christopher first appears in 1880 and Richard in 1880, so Christopher has the longer recorded history.