Ralph

English from German

"wolf-counsel"

Ralph Origin and Meaning

The name Ralph is a boy's name of English origin meaning "wolf-counsel".

Ralph has two diametrically different images: there's the suave Ralph Fiennes-type Brit (often pronounced Rafe), and then there's the Jackie Gleason blue-collar, bowling blowhard Ralph Kramden bus driver. It's all in the eye of the beholder, though its hip factor did rise when it was chosen for his son by cool U.K. actor Matthew Macfadyen.

Ralph is a name that's been around for a thousand years, was in the Top 30 from the 1870s to the 1920s, and just could make a comeback. It's already in the UK Top 100.

Ralph has a number of notable namesakes, from Ralph Waldo Emerson to Ralph Abernathy to Ralph Lauren. In literature, Ralph is a Shakespearean name, appearing in Henry IV, is a pivotal figure in Henry James's The Portrait of a Lady and Ralph was one of the three main boys in Lord of the Flies. And let's not forget Ralphie in A Christmas Story.

Or you might prefer the French version--Raoul.

Ralph Rank in US Top 1000

# 951 in the US

Ralph Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 251 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Ralph

• 951 US 2018
• 251 Nameberry 2025
• 196 Unique 2023
• 98 England 2023

20 Names Similar to Ralph

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Ralph.

• Harold
• Chester
• Bernard
• Stanley
• Walter
• Clifford
• Albert
• Herbert
• Gilbert
• Alfred
• Frank
• Wallace
• Sidney
• Ernest
• Ned
• Wilfred
• Clyde
• Howard
• Wilbur
• Clarence

Famous People Named Ralph

• Ralph George Macchio American actor
• Ralph Waldo Emerson American author
• Ralph Lauren American fashion designer
• Ralph David Richardson English actor
• Ralph Nathaniel Twistleton Wykeham Fiennes English actor
• Ralph Nader American consumer advocate and politician
• Ralph David Abernathy American civil rights leader
• Ralph Edmund Stanley American bluegrass musician
• Ralph Vaughan Williams English composer
• Ralph Bakshi American film director
• Ralph Macfadyen son of actor Matthew Macfadyen
• Ralph H. Fowler British physicist and astronomer
• Ralph Waite American actor
• Ralph Wright American animator and writer
• (William Henry) Ralph Reader British actor and Gang Show founder
• Ralph Johnson Bunche American political scientist, winner of the Nobel Peace Prize
• Ralph Marvin Steinman Canadian immunologist, winner of the Nobel Prize
• Ralph Neville Bishop of Chichester and Lord Chancellor of England
• Ralph George Houk American baseball player and manager
• Ralph Allen Garr American baseball player
• Ralph Moody Hall U.S. Congressman from Texas
• Ralph Abercromby Scottish general and politician
• Ralph Adams Cram American architect
• Ralph Gerald Backstrom Canadian ice hockey player
• Ralph Rexford Bellamy American actor
• Ralph Blane (born Ralph Uriah Hunsecker) American songwriter
• Ralph Theodore Joseph Branca American baseball player
• Ralph William John Brown English actor
• Ralph Jose P. Burns American songwriter and bandleader
• Ralph Byrd American actor
• Ralph Cudworth English Platonist philosopher
• Ralph Horween American NFL football player
• Ralph Phillip Klein Canadian politician, 12th Premier of Alberta
• Ralph Neville 1st Earl of Westmorland, 4th Baron Neville de Raby
• Ralph George Algernon Percy 12th Duke of Northumberland
• Vincent Ralph Pagano (b. 2015) son of Ralph Pagano
• Ralph Shearer Northam 73rd Governor of Virginia

The name Ralph in Pop Culture

• Ralph Kramden main character on TV's "The Honeymooners"
• Ralph Wiggum character on TV's "The Simpsons"
• Ralph character in William Golding's "Lord of the Flies"
• "Wreck It Ralph," 2012 Disney movie and main character
• Ralph "Ralphie" Parker main character in movie "A Christmas Story"
• Ralph Rover main character in "Coral Island" (1858) by R. M. Ballantyne
• Ralph Jones main character in 1991 movie "King Ralph"
• Ralph Dineen boy genius on TV's "Scorpion"
• "Ralph 124C 41+ " science fiction novel by Hugo Gernsback
• Ralph Theodore Guard character on animated series "Animaniacs"
• Ralph giant wolf monster in the video game "Rampage"
• Rotten Ralph children's book series by Jack Gantos
• Ralph mouse in "The Mouse and the Motorcycle" by Beverly Cleary
• Ralph E. Wolf character in Warner Bros. cartoons
• Ralph character in comic strip "Drabble" by Kevin Fagan
• Ralph Smith character in G. A. Henty's, St. George for England
• Ralph character in comic strip "Sally Forth" by Francesco Marciuliano
• Ralph Drang character on TV's "Dear John"
• Ralph Percy main character in Mary Johnston's "To Have and to Hold"
• Ralph Harcourt character in G. A. Henty's "A Knight of the White Cross"
• Randolph "Ralph" Dibny AKA Elongated Man, DC Comics superhero and character on TV's "The Flash"
• Ralph Furley aka Mr. Furley , character in the TV series "Three's Company"