Richardson

R1I1C3H4A1R1D2S1O1N1
/ˈɹɪt͡ʃɚdsən/

proper noun

An English surname originating as a patronymic.

OriginMiddle English sone ← Old English sunu ← Proto-West Germanic *sunu →
CommonScrabble 16
Ask AI about this wordChatGPTClaudePerplexityGoogle AIGrok

Meanings

proper nounRichardson (countable and uncountable, plural Richardsons)

plural Richardsons

  1. countableAn English surname originating as a patronymic.
  2. A placename:
    1. countableuncountableA suburb of Canberra, Australian Capital Territory, Australia.
    2. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Lawrence County, Kentucky.
    3. countableuncountableA township in Morrison County, Minnesota.
    4. countableuncountableA township in Butler County, Nebraska.
    5. countableuncountableA city in Dallas County and Collin County, Texas; an affluent inner suburb of Dallas.
    6. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in Calhoun County, West Virginia.
    7. countableuncountableAn unincorporated community in the town of Clayton, Polk County, Wisconsin.
    8. abbreviationcountableellipsisuncountableEllipsis of Richardson County.

Origin

  1. Proto-Indo-European*h₃reǵ-
  2. Proto-Indo-European*h₃rḗǵs
  3. Proto-Celtic*rīxs
  4. Proto-Germanic*rīks
  5. Proto-West Germanic*rīk
  6. Proto-Indo-European*kret-der.?
  7. Proto-Germanic*harduz
  8. Proto-West Germanic*hardu
  9. Proto-West Germanic*Rīkuhardu
  10. Old High GermanRihhart
  11. Middle High GermanRihard
  12. Medieval LatinRichardus
  13. Old FrenchRichard
  14. Middle EnglishRycharde
  15. EnglishRichard
  16. Proto-Indo-European*sew-?
  17. Proto-Indo-European*sewH-
  18. Proto-Indo-European*suHnús
  19. Proto-Germanic*sunuz
  20. Proto-West Germanic*sunu
  21. Old Englishsunu
  22. Middle Englishsone
  23. EnglishRichardson

From Richard + -son.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Chinese Mandarin 理查森
  • 理查森 (Lǐchásēn)surname meaning "son of Richard"
Italian Di Riccardo, Riccardi
  • Di Riccardosurname meaning "son of Richard"
  • Riccardisurname meaning "son of Richard"
Spanish Ricárdez
  • Ricárdezsurname meaning "son of Richard"
Cite this entry
APA

Richardson. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Richardson

MLA

“Richardson.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Richardson. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “Richardson,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/Richardson.

Source: Richardson on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.