Derika
Of Greek origin meaning "victorious people".
Name Census estimates that about 424 living Americans carry the first name Derika. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Derika today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Derika births was 1990 (24 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Derika. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
424
~ 1 in 808,383 Americans
Peak year
1990
24 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2011 SSA rank
#15,341
Tracked since 1971
Census
Derika in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 380 people with the first name Derika, which placed it at #25,078 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#25,078
National first-name rank
People counted
380
380 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
62.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Derika
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Derika is Black at 62.1%. The next largest groups are White (21.8%) and Hispanic (7.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Derika described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Derika at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American62.1% · 236
- White21.8% · 83
- Hispanic or Latino7.6% · 29
- Two or more races4.5% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 5
Popularity
Derika: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Derika from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 191 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Derika by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Derika during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Derikas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Derika
The given name Derika is believed to have originated from the German language and culture. It is a variation of the name Dietrich, which is derived from the Old German words "diet" meaning "people" and "rich" meaning "ruler" or "powerful". The name Derika likely emerged in the Middle Ages, around the 10th or 11th century.
While the name Derika does not appear to have any direct references in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it is possible that some historical figures may have borne this name or a similar spelling. The earliest recorded example of the name Derika is from the 12th century, when a woman named Derika von Staufen was mentioned in a German chronicle from that period.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the name Derika was Derika von Wittelsbach, a German noblewoman who lived in the 13th century. She was a member of the influential Wittelsbach family and played a role in the political affairs of her time.
In the 16th century, there was a Dutch painter named Derika van Haarlem, who was known for her portraits and religious paintings. She was active in the city of Haarlem, which was a center of artistic activity during the Dutch Golden Age.
Another historical figure with the name Derika was Derika von Hohenzollern, a German princess who lived in the 17th century. She was born in 1623 and was a member of the Hohenzollern dynasty, which ruled over various territories in what is now Germany and Prussia.
In the 19th century, there was a Swiss writer and feminist named Derika Stämpfli, who was born in 1841 and died in 1908. She was an advocate for women's rights and education, and her works explored themes of gender equality and social justice.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the name Derika. While not a widely popular name, it has persisted across various cultures and time periods, carrying with it a sense of strength and power from its Germanic origins.
People
Derika + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Derika as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Derika: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Derika?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 424 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Derika going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 808,383 US residents.
Is Derika a common name?
We classify Derika as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 440 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Derika most popular?
The single biggest year for Derika was 1990, when 24 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Derika is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Derika in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 380 people with the name Derika, or 0.13 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #25,078 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Derika in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Derika?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Derika appears almost entirely female. Of the 375 people counted with this name, 99.5% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Derika?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Derika is Black at 62.1%. The next largest groups are White (21.8%) and Hispanic (7.6%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Derika most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Derika in the 2020 Census, accounting for 62.1% (236 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Derika in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Derika a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Derika in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Derika still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Derika in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Derika can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Derika?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.