Ridge
Meaning of Ridge
Ridge, pronounced /rɪdʒ/, stems from the Old English hrycg, a topographic term for the elongated crest that separates two valleys, and it migrated from surname to given name in the United States during the mid-twentieth century. The word’s literal reference to raised, sheltering ground imparts semantic overtones of elevation, steadiness, and unobstructed perspective—attributes that align with a current Anglo-American preference for concise, nature-laden male appellations. U.S. Social Security data trace a measured but persistent rise: virtually absent before the 1950s, Ridge hovered below the national radar until a soap-opera namesake in 1987 expanded public awareness; thereafter, annual occurrences advanced from double digits to over 560 newborns in 2024, bringing the name to rank 465 and marking its highest placement to date. This trajectory situates Ridge in a distinctive onomastic niche—phonetically crisp, thematically rugged, and statistically uncommon—alongside cognate word names like Brooks and Heath, yet retaining sufficient rarity to convey individual distinction.
Pronunciation
American English
- Pronunced as rij (/rɪdʒ/)
U.S. Popularity Chart
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