Rickman
An old Germanic surname built from a personal name ending in -man, likely meaning “Ric’s man” or “man of Ric.”
The #5,166 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 45,578 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Rickman is best understood as a Germanic personal-name surname: Rick + man. In the older sources, the first element is linked to a short form of a name like Ric, Rich, or Ric-, rather than to the modern word “rich.” The ending -man here is not an occupation but part of an old naming pattern found in medieval personal names and surnames.
History
Historical dictionaries place Rickman in England very early, with medieval records showing forms such as Rikeman. Some 19th-century writers connected it with place-name evidence from Hertfordshire, but others noted that the place-name itself was historically different and that the surname is better explained from an old personal name. The name has therefore been treated as an inherited old Germanic/English surname rather than a simple descriptive byname.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname scholars specifically warned against reading Rickman as if it came from Rickmansworth; the place-name had a different historical form.
From the historical record
“RICKETSON, Ricket's Son. RICKMAN (Teut.) = Rick (q.v.) + man. John fil. Rikeman.— /f«Mrf. Rolls. Cp. Richman. It has often been stated that an A.-Sax. pers. name Ricman is found in the Herts place-name Rickmansworth ; but as this place was formerly Richmereswearth and Rykemereswearth, the pers. name involved is, of…”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)