What origin is the name Derek?

Derek comes from german naming traditions. Names from this origin often carry meanings tied to nature, virtues or heritage.

Is Derek a popular name?

Derek is very rare in official US birth records — fewer than 5 babies of this gender were given the name in any year we checked.

What are good sister names for Derek?

Names from the same german tradition pair naturally with Derek — for example Emma, Amelia, Adeline. You can browse more on our german names page.

Derek

Q: Is Derek a rare name?

Yes. Derek does not appear in US Social Security birth records, which list every name given to at least 5 babies, so it is rare in the US.

Discover the meaning and origin of the name Derek

Derek

Boy

german

2 syllables

Derek is a german boy's name meaning "Famous ruler; gifted ruler. people ruler. variant of the old german theodoricfamous bearer: derrick was a 17th century hangman at tyhurn, whose name became synonymous with gallows and now refers to a type of crane.gifted ruler. from theodoric".

The meaning of Derek is "Famous ruler; gifted ruler. people ruler. variant of the old german theodoricfamous bearer: derrick was a 17th century hangman at tyhurn, whose name became synonymous with gallows and now refers to a type of crane.gifted ruler. from theodoric" — a boy name of german origin. It has 2 syllables.

Origin: german
Gender: Boy
Syllables: 2

Meaning compiled from public name lists.

Meaning

Famous ruler; gifted ruler. people ruler. variant of the old german theodoricfamous bearer: derrick was a 17th century hangman at tyhurn, whose name became synonymous with gallows and now refers to a type of crane.gifted ruler. from theodoric

Popularity

Very rare in US records (source: US Social Security Administration birth records (best rank 2008–2017))

Quick answers about Derek

Very rare in US records

What does Derek mean?

Derek is a boy name of german origin meaning "Famous ruler; gifted ruler. people ruler. variant of the old german theodoricfamous bearer: derrick was a 17th century hangman at tyhurn, whose name became synonymous with gallows and now refers to a type of crane.gifted ruler. from theodoric".

Is Derek a rare name?

Yes. Derek does not appear in official US birth records for 2017, meaning fewer than 5 babies got the name that year.

Sister names that go with Derek

Emma Amelia Adeline Lena Heidi Hanna

Combine Derek with another name

Our free name combiner blends two names into new baby name ideas.

Names with a similar meaning to Derek

Derek means "Famous ruler; gifted ruler. people ruler. variant of the old german theodoricfamous bearer: derrick was a 17th century hangman at tyhurn, whose name became synonymous with gallows and now refers to a type of crane.gifted ruler. from theodoric" — these names share that spirit.