Richards is a Celtic Welsh, or Cornish surname based on the English version of the parent's name ending in -S.[1][2] In 1881 people with this surname were mainly located in Wales, Cornwall and adjacent South-West counties of England.[3] By 1998 many Welsh and Cornish people had migrated to cities in England particularly those adjacent to these areas.[4] The name is derived from the Germanic ric ("power") and hard ("brave"/"hardy").[5][6]
A
edit- Aaron Richards, vocalist for the label Monstercat
- Ahmmon Richards (born 1998), American football player
- Alan Richards (born 1958), Royal Navy Vice Admiral and Chief of Defence Intelligence
- Albert Richards (disambiguation)
- Alfred Richards (disambiguation)
- Alden Richards (born 1992), Filipino actor and host
- Alma Richards (1890–1963), American athlete
- Alun Richards (1929–2001), Welsh novelist
- Amy Richards (born 1971), American activist, writer, feminist and art historian
- Angela Richards (born 1944), British actress
- Ann Richards (actress) (1917–2006), Australian actress
- Ann Richards (singer) (1935–1982), American jazz singer
- Ann Richards (1933–2006), American politician, 45th Governor of Texas
- Anna Richards (born 1964), New Zealand rugby union international
- Anne Richards (born 1964), Scottish chief executive officer of the investment management company Fidelity International
- Anthony Charles Richards, British Army officer and equerry
- Ariana Richards, American actress
- Asim Richards (born 2000), American football player
- J. August Richards, American actor
B
edit- Barry Richards, "Dancing Barry" dancer at basketball games
- Barry Richards (cricketer), South African cricketer
- Beah Richards, American actress and writer
- Ben Richards (disambiguation), various people and fictional characters
- Beresford Richards, Canadian politician
- Bernard Richards, British computer scientist
- Billie Mae Richards, Canadian voice actress
- Bob Richards (disambiguation)
- Brad Richards, Canadian ice-hockey player
- Brandon Richards, former National High School Record holder in pole vault, son of Bob Richards
- Brooke Richards, American model
C
edit- Cecil Roy Richards (1893—1973), Australian World War I flying ace
- Charles Richards (disambiguation)
- Christopher or Chris Richards (disambiguation)
- Claire Richards, British singer
- Colin Kazim-Richards, English footballer
- Corey Richards, Australian cricketer
- Cornelia Holroyd Bradley Richards, American author
- Craig Richards (disambiguation)
D
edit- Davey Richards, American wrestler
- David Richards (disambiguation)
- Dean Richards (footballer), English footballer
- Dean Richards (rugby player), English rugby union international
- DeForest Richards, American banker and politician
- Deke Richards, American songwriter and music producer
- Deleon Richards, American gospel singer
- Denis Richards, British historian
- Denise Richards, American actress
- Dick Richards (disambiguation), several people
- Dickinson W. Richards, American physiologist
- Dig Richards (1940–1983), Australian rock and roll singer
- Donna Richards, pseudonym of American comics artist Don Rico
E
edit- Ellen Swallow Richards (1842–1911), American chemist
- Emil Richards (1932–2019), American percussionist
- Emma Richards (minister) (1927–2014), American Mennonite minister
- Emma Richards (yachtswoman), British yachtswoman
- Emma Gaggiotti Richards (1825–1912), Italian painter
- Erin Richards (born 1986), British actress
- Eugene Richards (born 1944), American documentary photographer
F
edit- Fannie M. Richards (1840–1922), American educator
- Frances Richards (British artist) (1903–1985), British artist
- Francis Richards (sailor) (1873–1955), British Olympic sailor
- Francis Richards (diplomat) (born 1945), former governor of Gibraltar
- Frank Richards (disambiguation)
- Frederick Richards (1833–1912), Royal Navy officer
- Frederick Richards (disambiguation)
G
edit- Garrett Richards (born 1988), American baseball player
- Gavin Richards, British actor
- Gene Richards (baseball), American baseball player
- Gene Richards (racing driver), American race car driver
- George Richards (disambiguation)
- Glen Richards (motorcyclist), Australian superbike rider
- Gordon Richards (jockey), British jockey
- Guy Richards (born 1983), Australian rules footballer
H
edit- Henry Melchior Muhlenberg Richards (1848–1862), United States Army and Navy officer
- Hilda Muhlhauser Richards, American federal labor official
I
edit- I. A. Richards, British literary critic
- Ian Richards (disambiguation)
- Irene Richards, New Zealand painter
J
edit- J. Havens Richards, American Jesuit educator
- J. Kirk Richards, American artist
- J. R. Richards, American singer
- Jack Richards (disambiguation)
- Janet Radcliffe Richards, British feminist philosopher
- Jann Arden Anne Richards, Canadian singer known as Jann Arden
- Jason Richards, New Zealand racing driver
- Jeff Richards (disambiguation)
- Jesse Richards, American artist
- Jim Richards (disambiguation)
- Jo-Anne Richards South African author and journalist
- John Richards (disambiguation)
- Jonelle Richards, New Zealand equestrian
- Joseph Richards (disambiguation), several people
- Julian C. Richards, British archaeologist and broadcaster
- Julian D. Richards, British archaeologist
- Justin Richards, British writer
K
edit- Kathleen Elizabeth Richards, aka Kathy Hilton, American actress
- Kathleen Richards, British composer, pianist and musicologist
- Keith Richards, British guitarist for The Rolling Stones
- Kim Richards, American actress
- Kim Richards (politician) (born 1971), Queensland MLA
- Kristi Richards, Canadian skier
- Kyle Richards, American actress
L
edit- Laura E. Richards, American writer
- Lee Greene Richards, American artist
- LeGrand Richards, American LDS (Mormon) leader
- Len Richards, Welsh footballer
- Lerrone Richards (born 1992), British boxer
- Leyton Richards (1859–1948), English Congregational minister and pacifist
- Lorenzo A. Richards, American soil physicist
- Lou Richards (actor), American actor
- Lou Richards, Australian rules footballer
M
edit- Marc Richards, English footballer
- Mark Richards (disambiguation)
- Martin Richards (disambiguation)
- Matt Richards (disambiguation)
- Matthias Richards, American congressman from Pennsylvania
- Melville Richards (1910–1973), Welsh scholar
- Micah Richards, English football player
- Michael Richards, American actor
- Mike Richards (ice hockey), Canadian ice hockey player
N
edit- Nansi Richards, Welsh harpist
- Nathaniel Richards (disambiguation)
- Nick Richards (basketball) (born 1997), Jamaican-American basketball player
- Nicola Richards, British Member of Parliament elected 2019
- Nigel Richards (Scrabble player), Scrabble champion
O
edit- O'Neil Richards (born 1976), Jamaican cricketer
- Owain Richards, British entomologist
P
edit- Pat Richards, Australian rugby league player
- Patricia D. Richards (born 1947), American photographer
- Paul Richards (disambiguation)
- Pearl Richards, pseudonym John Oliver Hobbes, American-British novelist
- Pete Richards (American football) (1905–1989), American football player
- Peter Richards (disambiguation)
R
edit- Rabbit Richards, American poet
- Ralph Richards (1809–1883), New York politician
- Ray Richards, US American football player
- Raymond Richards (born 1987), Japanese American wakeboarder
- Regina Richards, American singer
- Renée Richards (born 1934), American tennis player
- Rhys Richards, New Zealand historian and ethnographer
- Richard N. Richards, American astronaut
- Richard Walter Richards (1894–1986), Australian Antarctic explorer
- Richard Watkins Richards (1863–1920), Lord Mayor of Sydney
- Robert Richards (disambiguation), several people, including:
- Robert L. Richards, American screenwriter
- Ron Richards (disambiguation), several people
- Rosalind Richards, Welsh television soap actress
S
edit- Sandie Richards, Jamaican athlete
- Sandra Richards, New Zealand netball player
- Sanya Richards, American athlete
- Solomon Richards (soldier) (died 1691), Irish soldier
- Stan Richards, British actor
- Stephen Richards (disambiguation)
- Steve Richards (born 1960), British TV and radio political journalist and newspaper columnist
- Steven Richards (born 1972), New Zealand racing driver
- Stevie Richards (1971), ring name of the American wrestler Michael Manna
- Sue Richards (artist) (1958–2014), Canadian artist
T
edit- T. J. Richards, Australian coachbuilder whose company became Chrysler Australia Limited
- Theodore Richards (disambiguation)
- Thomas Richards (disambiguation)
- Todd Richards (disambiguation)
- Tom Richards (disambiguation)
- Tony Richards (disambiguation)
- Travis Richards, American ice-hockey player
- Trevor Richards (disambiguation)
- Trudy Richards (died 2008), American jazz singer
V
edit- Vargrave Richards, Virgin Islands politician
- Vernon Richards (1915–2001), Italian-British anarchist
- Vincent Richards, American tennis player
- Viv Richards, Antiguan cricketer
W
edit- Wayne Richards, Australian rugby league footballer
- Willard Richards, American LDS (Mormon) leader
- William Richards (cricketer), South African cricketer
- William Richards (disambiguation)
Z
edit- Zalmon Richards, American educator
Fictional characters
edit- Annie Douglas Richards, character from American TV soap opera Sunset Beach
- Ben Richards, main character in the movie The Running Man (1987 film).
- Brendan Richards, character from K9 and Company
- Franklin Richards, fictional character from the Fantastic Four
- Reed Richards, fictional character from Fantastic Four
- Sue Richards, fictional character from the Fantastic Four
- Valeria Meghan Von Doom (née Richards), fictional character from the Fantastic Four
See also
edit- Attorney General Richards (disambiguation)
- General Richards (disambiguation)
- Judge Richards (disambiguation)
- Justice Richards (disambiguation)
- Senator Richards (disambiguation)
- Lorin Morgan-Richards, author/publisher of Welsh descent
- Helen Nethercutt-Richards, philanthropist and businesswoman
- Jean Ramjohn-Richards, physician and First Lady of Trinidad and Tobago
- Richard (surname)
- Baron Milverton
- Nethercutt-Richards family
References
edit- ^ "Great Britain Family Names profiling website (redirected from National Trust surname profiler site)". The Economic and Social Research Council. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
- ^ "Richards Surname Meaning and Geographic Distribution". forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 19 January 2014
- ^ "Great Britain Family Names profiling website (redirected from National Trust surname profiler site)". Richards 1881 map. The Economic and Social Research Council. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
- ^ "Great Britain Family Names profiling website (redirected from National Trust surname profiler site)". Richards 1998 map. The Economic and Social Research Council. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
- ^ "Origin of the name Richard". behindthename.com. Retrieved 24 April 2023.
- ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 381. ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1. Retrieved 23 February 2017.