Ulrich (), is a

German given name Personal names in German-speaking Europe consist of one or several given names (''Vorname'', plural ''Vornamen'') and a surname (''Nachname, Familienname''). The ''Vorname'' is usually gender-specific. A name is usually cited in the " Western orde ...

, derived from

Old High German Old High German (OHG; german: Althochdeutsch (Ahd.)) is the earliest stage of the German language, conventionally covering the period from around 750 to 1050. There is no standardised or supra-regional form of German at this period, and Old Hig ...

''Uodalrich'', ''Odalric''. It is composed of the elements '' uodal-'' meaning "(noble) heritage" and ''-rich'' meaning "rich, powerful". Attested from the 8th century as the name of

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pre ...

c nobility, the name is popularly given from the high medieval period in reference to Saint

Ulrich of Augsburg Ulrich of Augsburg (890 – 4 July 973), sometimes spelled Uodalric or Odalrici, was Prince-Bishopric of Augsburg in Germany. He was the first saint to be canonized not by a local authority but by the Pope. Life Early years Much of the infor ...

(canonized 993). There is also a surname Ulrich. It is most prevalent in Germany and has the highest density in Switzerland

This last name was found in the United States around the year 1840

Most Americans with the last name were concentrated in Pennsylvania, which was home to many Pennsylvania Dutch, German immigrant communities. Nowadays in the United States, the name is distributed largely in the Pennsylvania-Ohio regio

History

Documents record the Old High German name ''Oadalrich'' or ''Uodalrich'' from the later 8th century in

Alamannia Alamannia, or Alemannia, was the kingdom established and inhabited by the Alemanni, a Germanic tribal confederation that had broken through the Roman '' limes'' in 213. The Alemanni expanded from the Main River basin during the 3rd century a ...

. The related name '' Adalric'' (

Anglo-Saxon The Anglo-Saxons were a cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo-Saxons happened wit ...

cognate '' Æthelric'') is attested from the 6th century (

Athalaric Athalaric (; 5162 October 534) was the king of the Ostrogoths in Italy between 526 and 534. He was a son of Eutharic and Amalasuntha, the youngest daughter of Theoderic the Great, whom Athalaric succeeded as king in 526. As Athalaric was only ...

King of the Ostrogoths; Æthelric of Bernicia). The name of Agilolfing duke Odilo (fl. 709–748) may represent a short form of the name. Count Udalrich I (fl. 778–814), a son of Gerold of Vinzgau, founded the Alamannic Udalriching dynasty, ancestral to the

counts of Bregenz The county of Bregenz is recorded as part of the Holy Roman Empire between 1043 and 1160. It was in possession of the Udalriching family, who took the titles of counts of Bregenz. After 1160, Bregenz fell to the counts of Montfort-Bregenz (1160 ...

. The given name occurred frequently in the Alamannic

Hunfriding The Hunfridings or Burchardings (''Bouchardids'') were a family of probably Alemannic origin who rose to prominence in their homeland, eventually becoming the first ducal dynasty of Swabia. The first known member of the family was Hunfrid, Margrav ...

dynasty in the 9th to 10th centuries; examples include Odalric, Count of Barcelona (fl. 850s) and Odalric, Count of

Thurgau Thurgau (; french: Thurgovie; it, Turgovia), anglicized as Thurgovia, more formally the Canton of Thurgau, is one of the 26 cantons forming the Swiss Confederation. It is composed of five districts and its capital is Frauenfeld. Thurgau is par ...

(fl. 920s). The name is recorded in an Icelandic form as ''Óðalríkr'' only in the later medieval period. In the

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. Hig ...

period the name generally commemorated Saint Ulrich,

Bishop of Augsburg Diocese of Augsburg is a diocese of the Catholic Church in Germany. The diocese is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich.attacks by Magyars. The Swiss Reformer

Ulrich Zwingli Huldrych or Ulrich Zwingli (1 January 1484 – 11 October 1531) was a leader of the Reformation in Switzerland, born during a time of emerging Swiss patriotism and increasing criticism of the Swiss mercenary system. He attended the Univ ...

etymologized his given name as ''Huldrych'' (''Huldricus, Huldaricus''), i.e. "rich in

grace Grace may refer to: Places United States * Grace, Idaho, a city * Grace (CTA station), Chicago Transit Authority's Howard Line, Illinois * Little Goose Creek (Kentucky), location of Grace post office * Grace, Carroll County, Missouri, an uninc ...

". In the wake of Zwingli, during the 16th century and well into the 18th century, it became a fashion - especially for Protestant writers - to Latinise the given name ''Ulrich'' as '' Huldricus''. The name was popularly given in 20th-century

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

, especially from the 1940s to the 1960s, peaking at rank 16 in 1947, but dropping below rank 100 in 1972. In

Czechoslovakia , rue, Чеськословеньско, , yi, טשעכאסלאוואקיי, , common_name = Czechoslovakia , life_span = 1918–19391945–1992 , p1 = Austria-Hungary , image_p1 ...

, ''Oldřich '' was popularly given in the 1940s to 1950s, peaking at rank 18 during 1946–1951.behindthename.com (Oldrich)

Variants

The German given name was adopted in Czech and Slovak as ''Oldřich'', ''Oldrich'' and in Scandinavian as ''Ulrik'', in Slovenian as '' Urh'', in Latvia as Uldis. Common German hypocoristics are ''Uli'' or ''Ulli'' (Swiss '' Ueli'') and historically '' Utz''. A Czech/Slovak hypocoristic is '' Volek'' and a Polish one ''Ryczek''. Feminine forms ''

Ulrikke Ulrikke is a feminine given name found primarily in Denmark and Norway. It is a feminine form of the masculine name Ulrik. Notable people named Ulrikke include: * Ulrikke Brandstorp (born 1995), Norwegian singer * Ulrikke Hansen Døvigen (born ...

'' and '' Ulrika'' have been recorded from the early modern period.

People with the given name

Medieval to early modern

* Udalrich I, count in Alamannia (fl. 778–814), son of Gerold of Vinzgau * Udalrich II, son of Udalrich I, count in Alamannia (fl. 800/803) * Odalric, Count of Barcelona (fl. 850s) *

(ca. 890 – 973), bishop and saint * Oldřich, Duke of Bohemia (c. 975 – 1034) *

Ulric Manfred II of Turin Ulric Manfred II ( it, Olderico Manfredi II; 975 992 – 29 October 1033 or 1034) or Manfred Ulric (') was the count of Turin and marquis of Susa in the early 11th century. He was the last male margrave from the Arduinid dynasty. Ul ...

(b. 1034), Count of Turin and Margrave of Susa * Ulric I of Carniola (d. 1070), the Margrave of Carniola and Carinthia * Ulric II of Carniola (d. 1112), the Margrave of Istria * Ulrich I, Bishop of Passau (c. 1027 – 1121) * Ulrich of Zell (1029–93), abbot and saint * Ulrich I Bishop of Eichstätt (r. 1075–1099) * Ulrich of Bamberg (fl. 1100), priest and chronicler * Ulrich II von Bogen, Bishop of Eichstätt (r. 1112–1125) *

Oldřich of Olomouc Udalrich of Olomouc (also known as ''Ulrich'', cz, Oldřich; la, Oldericus; 1134 – 18 October 1177) was Duke in Hradec Králové (eastern Bohemia) from 1152 till 1153 and between 1173–1177 ruled the appanage of Olomouc (as Duke of Olom ...

(d. 1177), duke in Bohemia * Ulrich von Zatzikhoven, late 12th century author of the Arthurian romance ''Lanzelet'' * Ulrich II (bishop of Passau) (d. 1221) * Ulrich von Liechtenstein (1200–1275), medieval writer, poet and knight * Ulrich III, Duke of Carinthia (ca. 1220 – 1269) * Ulrich II, Count of Württemberg (ca. 1254 – 1279) *

Ulrich III, Count of Württemberg Ulrich III (after 1286 – 11 July 1344) Count of Württemberg from 1325 until 1344. Career Ulrich was already strongly involved in politics during the reign of his father Eberhard I. In 1319 he handled a treaty with King Frederick I, the ...

(after 1286 – 1392) * Ulrich II von Graben (before 1300 – ca. 1361), Austrian nobleman * Ulrich III, Lord of Hanau (c. 1310 – 1369 or 1370) * Ulrich IV, Count of Württemberg (after 1315 – 1366) *

Ulrich von Jungingen Ulrich von Jungingen (1360 – 15 July 1410) was the 26th Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights, Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights, serving from 1407 to 1410. His policy of confrontation with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Pol ...

(1360–1410), 26th Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights * Ulrich II, Count of Celje (1406–1456) * Ulrich I, Count of East Frisia (1408–1466) * Ulrich III von Nussdorf,

Bishop of Passau The Diocese of Passau is a Roman Catholic diocese in Germany that is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.Ulrich V, Count of Württemberg Ulrich V of Württemberg called ''"der Vielgeliebte"'' (the much loved) (1413Detlev Schwennicke: ''Europaische Stammtafeln'', New Series, Vol. I/2, Tafel 256. – 1 September 1480, in Leonberg), Count of Württemberg. He was the younger son of Cou ...

(1413–1480) * Ulrich II, Duke of Mecklenburg-Stargard (probably before 1428 – 1471) * Ulrich Fugger the Elder (1441–1510), German businessman and member of the Fugger family *

Ulrich Rülein von Calw Ulrich Rülein von Calw (1465–1523) was a doctor, mathematician and well-known mining engineer. He was also active as a surveyor, town planner and astrologer and was the mayor () of the mining town of Freiberg for five years. Life Rülein von ...

(1465–1523), mayor of Freiberg, Saxony * Ulrich of Hardegg (after 1483–1535), Count of Hardegg *

(1484–1535), leader of the Reformation in Switzerland *

Ulrich, Duke of Württemberg Duke Ulrich of Württemberg (8 February 14876 November 1550) succeeded his kinsman Eberhard II as Duke of Württemberg in 1498. He was declared of age in 1503. His volatile personality made him infamous, being called the "Swabian Henry VIII" by ...

(1487–1550) *

Ulrich von Hutten Ulrich von Hutten (21 April 1488 – 29 August 1523) was a German knight, scholar, poet and satirist, who later became a follower of Martin Luther and a Protestant reformer. By 1519, he was an outspoken critic of the Roman Catholic Church. Hu ...

(1488–1523), German knight, scholar, poet and reformer during Knights' Revolt *

Ulrich Hugwald Ulrich Hugwald (''Udalricus Hugualdus'', ''Huldaricus Mutius Hugwaldus'', 1496–1571) was a Swiss humanist scholar and Reformer. Born in Wilen near Bischofszell, county of Thurgau, he was enrolled in the theological faculty in Basel Unive ...

(1496–1571), Swiss reformer *

Ulrich, Duke of Mecklenburg Ulrich III, Duke of Mecklenburg or Ulrich III of Mecklenburg-Güstrow (5 March 1527 – 14 March 1603) was Duke of Mecklenburg ( -Güstrow) from 1555-56 to 1603. Early life Ulrich was the third son of Duke Albrecht VII and Anna of Brandenburg. U ...

(1527–1603) * Ulrik of Denmark (1578–1624), administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin *

Ulrich, Duke of Pomerania Duke Ulrich of Pomerania (12 August 1589, in Barth – 31 October 1622, in Przybiernów), was a Lutheran administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Cammin and non-reigning Duke of Pomerania. Life Ulrich was the youngest son of Duke Bogislaw XIII ...

(1589–1622) * Ulrik of Denmark (1611–1633), administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Schwerin * Ulrich Grappler von Trappenburg,

Bishop of Passau The Diocese of Passau is a Roman Catholic diocese in Germany that is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.Ulrich, 10th Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau Ulrich, 10th Prince Kinsky of Wchinitz and Tettau (german: Ulrich Ferdinand Adolf Antonius Bonaventura Maria Fürst Kinsky von Wchinitz und Tettau; 15 August 189319 December 1938) was the titular pretender House of Kinsky#Princes Kinsky of Wchinit ...

(1893–1938), titular pretender * Ulrich Daldrup (born 1947), German scientist and mayor of Aachen * Ulrich Eberl (born 1962), German science and technology journalist * Ulrich Ellis (1904–1981), Australian writer * Ulrich Graf (1878–1950), member of Hitler's inner circle *

Ulric Guttinguer Ulric Guttinguer (31 January 1787, in Rouen – 21 September 1866, in Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 s ...

(1785–1866), French novelist * Ulrich Herbert (born 1951), German historian * Hans-Ulrich Indermaur (born 1939), Swiss journalist and writer * Ulrich Leyendecker (born 1946), German composer of contemporary classical music * Ulrich Marida, Central African Republic basketball coach * Ulrich Matthes (born 1959), German actor * Ueli Maurer (b. 1950), Swiss politician *

Ulrich Mühe Friedrich Hans Ulrich Mühe (; 20 June 1953 – 22 July 2007) was a German film, television and theatre actor. He played the role of Hauptmann (Captain) Gerd Wiesler in the Oscar-winning film '' Das Leben der Anderen'' (''The Lives of Others'', 20 ...

(1953–2007), German actor and director * Ulrich Noethen (born 1959), German actor * Ulrich Salchow (1877–1949), German figure skater and inventor of the salchow jump * Ulrich Schmid-Maybach, philanthropist, real estate developer and entrepreneur *

Ulrich Schnauss Ulrich Schnauss (born 1977) is a German electronic musician and producer based in London, England. He is best known for being a member of Tangerine Dream from 2014 to 2020. Biography Ulrich Schnauss was born in the northern German seaport of ...

(born 1977), German musician * Ulrich Wilhelm Graf Schwerin von Schwanenfeld (1902–1944), a key conspirator in the failed

20 July plot On 20 July 1944, Claus von Stauffenberg and other conspirators attempted to assassinate Adolf Hitler, Führer of Nazi Germany, inside his Wolf's Lair field headquarters near Rastenburg, East Prussia, now Kętrzyn, in present-day Poland. The ...

to assassinate Hitler in 1944 *

Ulrich Steinhilper Ulrich Steinhilper (14 September 1918 – 20 October 2009) was a World War II Luftwaffe fighter ace who made numerous attempts to escape after he was shot down and captured. As a post-war IBM typewriter salesman, he was an early proponent of wor ...

(1918–2009), World War II Luftwaffe ace credited by some with the concept of word processing *

Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff Enno Friedrich Wichard Ulrich von Wilamowitz-Moellendorff (22 December 1848 – 25 September 1931) was a German classical philologist. Wilamowitz, as he is known in scholarly circles, was a renowned authority on Ancient Greece and its literatur ...

(1848–1931), German classical philologist *

Ulrich Wild Ulrich Wild is an American record producer, engineer and mixer specializing in the rock and metal genres. Born and raised in Switzerland, Ulrich is now a naturalized citizen in the United States, living in Los Angeles, California. In a career t ...

(born 1969), American record producer * Ulrich Friedrich Wilhelm Joachim von Ribbentrop (1893-1946), more commonly known as Joachim von Ribbentrop, Foreign Minister of Nazi Germany from 1938 until 1945 *

Ulrich Frédéric Woldemar, Comte de Lowendal Ulrich (), is a German given name, derived from Old High German ''Uodalrich'', ''Odalric''. It is composed of the elements ''Othala rune, uodal-'' meaning "(noble) heritage" and ''-rich'' meaning "rich, powerful". Attested from the 8th century as th ...

(1700–1755), German-born French soldier and statesmen

People with the surname

* Benjamin Ulrich (born 1988), German rugby union international * Bror Ludvig Ulrich (1818–1887), Swedish military and colonial governor * Christian Ulrich (1836–1909), Austrian architect * D. K. Ulrich (born 1944), American race car driver/owner * Donald Ulrich aka Don Rich (1941–1974) American country music musician * Dutch Ulrich (1899–1929), American baseball player * Edward Oscar Ulrich (1857–1944), American invertebrate paleontologist * Einer Ulrich (1896-1969), Danish tennis player *

Eric Ulrich Eric Ulrich (born February 13, 1985) is a former member of the New York City Council representing the 32nd district. His constituency includes the neighborhoods of Belle Harbor, Breezy Point, Broad Channel, Hamilton Beach, Howard Beach, Lin ...

(born 1985), American politician from New York City * Fernando Ulrich (born 1952), Portuguese economist and banking administrator * Henry G. Ulrich III, United States Navy admiral who retired in 2007 *

Jan Ullrich Jan Ullrich (; born 2 December 1973) is a German former professional road bicycle racer. Ullrich won gold and silver medals in the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney. He won the 1999 Vuelta a España and the HEW Cyclassics in front of a home c ...

(born 1973), German race cyclist * Jennifer Ulrich (born 1984), German actress * Joe Ulrich (born 1961), American former soccer player *

Lars Ulrich Lars Ulrich (; ; born 26 December 1963) is a Danish musician best known as the drummer and co-founder of American heavy metal band Metallica. The son and grandson respectively of tennis players Torben and Einer Ulrich, he played tennis in his ...

(born 1963), Danish drummer for heavy metal band Metallica * Laurent Ulrich (born 1951), French archbishop of the Catholic Church *

Laurel Thatcher Ulrich Laurel Thatcher Ulrich (born July 11, 1938) is a Pulitzer Prize-winning American historian specializing in early America and the history of women, and a professor at Harvard University. Her approach to history has been described as a tribute ...

(born 1938), American historian and writer * Lester J. Ulrich (1908-1991), American lawyer and politician * Richard Ulrich (born 1942), German board game designer * Skeet Ulrich (born 1970), American actor * Torben Ulrich (born 1928), Danish writer and tennis pro * Tracy Ulrich (born 1966), aka Tracii Guns, guitarist and musician * Werner Ulrich (born 1948), Swiss social scientist and practical philosopher * William M. Ulrich (born ca. 1956), American management consultant

Fictional characters

* Ulrich, the old sorcerer in the film ''

Dragonslayer A dragonslayer is a person or being that slays dragons. Dragonslayers and the creatures they hunt have been popular in traditional stories from around the world: they are a type of story classified as type 300 in the Aarne–Thompson classific ...

'' (1981) * Ulrich, the protagonist of Robert Musil's 20th century novel '' The Man Without Qualities'' * Ulrich Stern, a character on the French animated TV series ''

Code Lyoko ''Code Lyoko'' () is a French animated television series created by Thomas Romain and Tania Palumbo and produced by Antefilms Production (season 1) and MoonScoop Group (seasons 2-4) for France 3 and Canal J, with the participation of Conseil ...

'' *

Ulrich von Bek The Eternal Champion is a fictional character created by British author Michael Moorcock and is a recurrent feature in many of his speculative fiction works. General overview Many of Moorcock's novels and short stories take place in a shared M ...

, the hero of '' The War Hound and the World's Pain'' and other novels by

Michael Moorcock Michael John Moorcock (born 18 December 1939) is an English writer, best-known for science fiction and fantasy, who has published a number of well-received literary novels as well as comic thrillers, graphic novels and non-fiction. He has worke ...

* Ulrich von Gradwitz, a character in Saki's short story "The Interlopers" * Ulrich von Liechtenstein, an alias of Heath Ledger's character in the film '' A Knight's Tale'' * Walter von Ulrich, one of the main characters in the novels '' Fall of Giants'' and '' Winter of the World'' by Welsh author

Ken Follett Kenneth Martin Follett, (born 5 June 1949) is a British author of thrillers and historical novels who has sold more than 160 million copies of his works. Many of his books have achieved high ranking on best seller lists. For example, in the ...

* Ulrich Wolfshead, warlord of the Nadir in David Gemmells Drenai tales. * Maj. Ulrich Herzoff, alias used by Rex Harrison's character in Carol Reed's film '' Night Train to Munich'' * Ullrich, an enemy appearing in

Nintendo is a Japanese multinational video game company headquartered in Kyoto, Japan. It develops video games and video game consoles. Nintendo was founded in 1889 as by craftsman Fusajiro Yamauchi and originally produced handmade playing cards ...

's '' EarthBound Beginnings''. * Ulrich Nielsen, a character in the German Netflix original series '' Dark''.

References

External links

* Profile of surname; note: contains errors.
Uodalrich (nordicnames.de)
{{given name, type=both German masculine given names Germanic given names Surnames from given names