indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Meaning & History
Medieval diminutive of Richard. The change in the initial consonant is said to have been caused by the way the velar Norman R was pronounced by the English (compare Dick 1).By the late 14th century it was a conventional type of name for a hosteler, hackneyman, etc., perhaps via alliteration; the later meaning "awkward provincial person" was established by 1700.