Derek

English from German form of Theodoric

"the people's ruler"

Derek Origin and Meaning

The name Derek is a boy's name of German origin meaning "the people's ruler".

Derek started out as a sophisticated Brit, but the name became so common over the last decades of the twentieth century that it lost much of its English accent, along with its stylish edge. Derek was a Top 100 name in the U.S. for 25 years, from 1970 to 1995, after which it began to decline.

Now, however, Derek (and Dereck) are back on the block, and have been rising since 2022. Derek was the most popular spelling in 2024, when it ranked at #258, while fast rising Dereck sat at #664 and Derrick appeared at #817. Collectively, the names were given to 2072 babies, making it feel like a Top 200 choice, ranking alongside Charlie, Felix, Maxwell, and Barrett.

As a name, Derek was introduced into Britain during the Middle Ages by immigrant Flemish weavers, likely in its longer form, Dederick. Dederick was a Low German form of Theodoric, giving the name the meaning "the people's ruler".

The revival of Derek as a baby name is currently happening in Spain and the US, whereas in the UK, Canada, and New Zealand, it may still be considered dated.

Derek Rank in US Top 1000

# 258 in the US

Derek Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 776 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Derek

• 258 US 2024
• 776 Nameberry 2025
• 589 Future 2028
• 372 Mexico 2021

20 Names Similar to Derek

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Derek.

• Jared
• Keith
• Trevor
• Bryan
• Sean
• Jeremy
• Justin
• Kyle
• Brandon
• Issac
• Dominick
• Scott
• Kevin
• Brendan
• Brian
• Travis
• Steven
• Kenneth
• Shawn
• Bradley

Famous People Named Derek

• Derek Sanderson Jeter American baseball player
• Derek Chauvin former American police officer charged with the murder of unarmed Black man George Floyd
• Derek Hough American dancer, actor and singer
• Derek Anthony Klena American actor and singer
• Derek George Jacobi English actor
• Derek Harold Richard Barton English chemist; winner of the Nobel Prize
• Derek Alton Walcott Saint Lucian poet and playwright
• Derek Lamar Fisher American basketball player and coach
• Derek Dallas Carr American NFL player
• Derek Matthew Anderson American NFL football player
• Derek Hardman American NFL football player
• Derek Steven Hagan American NFL football player
• Derek Newton American NFL football player
• Derek Sinclair Cox American NFL football player
• Derek Landri American NFL football player
• Derek Christopher Lowe American baseball player
• Derek Keith Barbosa aka Chino XL American rapper
• Derek Taylor English journalist and press officer for The Beatles
• Derek Daly Irish racing driver
• Derek Rae Scottish football commentator
• Derek Walsh Webb American singer,songwriter of band Caedmon's Call
• Derek Thompson Northern Irish actor
• Derek Roland Clark English MEP
• Derek Vaughan Welsh MEP
• Derek Alexander Muller Australian/Canadian vlogger, focusing on science
• Temuera Derek Morrison New Zealand actor
• Derek Krahn social media personality 'BigCatDerek'

The name Derek in Pop Culture

• Derek "McDreamy" Shepherd character on TV's "Grey's Anatomy"
• Derek Bailey Shepherd son of Meredith Grey and Derek Shepherd on the show "Grey's Anatomy"
• Derek Venturi main character on TV's "Life With Derek"
• Derek Hale character on TV's "Teen Wolf"
• Derek Morgan character on TV's "Criminal Minds"
• Derek Clifford Simmons character in video game "Resident Evil 6"
• Derek Reese character on TV's "The Terminator : The Sarah Connor Chronicles"
• Derek Noakes main character on British TV series "Derek"
• Derek Vinyard character in film "American History X"
• Derek Malloy character on TV's "The Client List"
• Derek Sommers Peyton Sawyer Scott's half brother on "One Tree Hill"
• Prince Derek Princess Odette's love interest in "The Swan Princess"
• Derek character in "Barney's Backyard Gang"
• Derek "Nursey" Nurse character in webcomic "Check Please!"
• Derek Arden character in anime "Black Butler"

International Variations of the name Derek

• Dedrick German
• Diederick German
• Dietrich German
• Derrig Irish
• Darrick German
• Derick Danish
• Derrick Danish
• Derrik Irish
• Daric Persian
• Diederik Danish
• Dirk Dutch
• Derk Danish
• Dedric German
• Derrek Danish