Given name & surname · also Germanic
Thierry
“a ruler of the people”
Thierry is used as a given name and a surname. One French interpretation is “a ruler of the people.”
Original FrenchThiry
Meaning & origin
What it means
One French interpretation is “a ruler of the people.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Germanic.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1947. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Thierry through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 887
- 855 boys · 32 girls
- Most popular year
- 2007
- 40 babies
- 2025
- 19
- #5,182 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +4%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 19 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 5,182 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 3.2% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 40 in 2007. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,134 as a first name in 2020; 1,464 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Thierry’s family of names
In French usage, Thierry shares a linguistic root with the Old English form Þeodric. In French usage, Thierry has a conventional equivalent in the English form Terry. Thierry is a form of Derek.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Thierry has relatives in 26 languages. Lines run from its Proto-Germanic roots to each of them.
32 related names in 26 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 15
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 30
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Dereksee also · English
- DerrickEnglish
- Terrysee also · English
- Dietrichsee also · German
- DirkDutch, German
- Didierequivalent
- DieterGerman
- ΘεοδώριχοςGreek
Show 22 moreShow fewer
- Tiricognate · Walloon
- Þeodriccognate · Old English
- TheodericEnglish
- DětřichCzech
- Thietmarequivalent
- TchèriWalloon
- TeodorikSlovene, Croatian
- ТеодорикSerbian
- ДерекRussian
- TeodoricRomanian
- TeodoricoPortuguese, Italian
- TeodorykPolish
- TjodrikNorwegian
- DidrikNorwegian
- DiederikDutch
- ÞiðrikIcelandic
- DetreHungarian
- TewdrigWelsh
- TíðrikurFaroese
- TiidrikEstonian
- TeodorikoEsperanto
- TeodorigBreton
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Thierry
- Thierry HenryFrench association football player and manager (born 1977)
- Theuderic IFrankish King485–534
- Thierry OmeyerFrench handball playerborn 1976
- Thierry BoutsenBelgian racecar driverborn 1957
- Thierry LhermitteFrench actor, director and screenwriterborn 1952
- Thierry BretonFrench businessman and politicianborn 1955
- Thierry NeuvilleWorld Rally Championship driverborn 1988
- Thierry, Count of FlandersCount of Flanders (1100-1168)
- Thierry BaudetDutch author and politician (born 1983)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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