MEANING & HISTORY
What does Cedric mean?
Cedric is a literary creation used by Walter Scott in Ivanhoe. It is generally connected with the older name Cerdic, although the exact change and the ultimate origin of Cerdic remain debated.
This gives Cedric a definite formation history even when a literal root translation cannot be settled. Calling it simply “beloved” would promote one proposed connection into a certainty. Its later appearance in Little Lord Fauntleroy also helped establish it as a familiar personal name.
Cedric and Cerdic are historically related comparisons, but their different letter order is meaningful and should not be silently corrected in records.
Pronunciation & syllables
Dictionary readings are kept by language. Select the reading that matches your intended pronunciation. Dots show the source’s written divisions; they are not a universal syllable count across languages.
Wiktionary contributors / Kaikki / Wiktextract · CC BY-SA 4.0
Origin and name formation
Language-specific accounts from the dictionary. A shared spelling can have more than one history.
CebuanoEtymology & source
From English Cedric. Partly from Cedric Errol of Little Lord Fauntleroy.
a male given name from English
Wiktionary: Cedric (Cebuano) ↗ · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
EnglishEtymology & source
Invented by Walter Scott for Ivanhoe, possibly misread for Cerdic, name of a Saxon king, anglicized from Welsh caredig (“beloved”), in which case a doublet of Caradoc, Caradog, Caratacus, Craddock, Cradock, McCarthy, and McCarty. Alternatively Scott based Cedric on the Welsh name Cedrych (“spectacular bounty”).
A male given name from Welsh.
Wiktionary: Cedric (English) ↗ · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
Adapted from Wiktionary contributors via Kaikki/Wiktextract. Source accounts remain in their original English; editorial summaries and filters are adapted. Attribution and downloads
Use in Philippine-linked records
Public-record transcription
1
eligible source records · 2001
This spelling is reported in an openly licensed transcription of elected-candidate records. This is a record count, not a birth count or national popularity measure.
OpenHalalan / COMELEC ↗PSA · OFFICIAL BIRTH RECORDS
Cedric in the birth records
Exact spelling and stated year in the published name tables. Read the counts as individual snapshots.
Tables included: 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2022, 2023 and 2024. The 2016 fact sheet lists five names per sex; the later tables include ten. Missing counts are not inferred. Sex categories follow the official tables, independently of dictionary gender labels. Explore the official tables →
Similar names to Cedric
Names with a similar opening or ending, ordered by spelling distance. Similar spelling does not imply the same meaning or origin.
Names in this collection
- Edric♂Wealth and ruler
- Cerio♂Short form of Glicerio
- Eric♂Ever-ruler, in the usual Norse analysis
- Cecil♂Roman Caecilius; also an English family-name route
- Celia♀Feminine of Caelius; also a short form of Cecilia
- Frederic♂Peace and ruler
- Cecelia·Cecilia-family form; possibly linked with Latin blind
- Cecile♀Unaccented Cécile, French form of Cecilia
What rhymes with Cedric?
No dictionary-confirmed rhyme match is available for this spelling in the current catalogue.
Names with a similar written ending
Spelling suggestions; these are not verified phonetic rhymes.
Explore Cedric further
Follow the sources
- OpenHalalan — pinned 2001 COMELEC transcription (opens in a new tab)
Source-reported given-name form in a row with a separate explicit middle initial; ODbL-1.0.
- COMELEC — 2001 List of Elected Candidates (opens in a new tab)
Original document identified by the transcription; selected PDF entries were spot-checked, not every imported row.
- Wiktionary contributors — Cedric (Cebuano) (opens in a new tab)
Explicit given-name sense and separately attributed etymology; no birth-frequency claim.
- Wiktionary contributors — Cedric (English) (opens in a new tab)
Language-specific given-name etymology; shared spelling does not prove every bearer has this origin.
- Behind the Name — cedric (opens in a new tab)
Walter Scott/Ivanhoe creation; probable Cerdic connection with uncertain deeper origin. Consulted editorial entry, not user-submitted content.