Meaning and background
The story behind Hicks
Hicks is a historic English surname, derived from Hick with an added possessive or family-name ending. Hick itself can be a medieval pet form of Richard, although its continental branches may arise differently. These steps matter: Hicks does not have a standalone literal meaning such as 'little king' merely because Richard has older Germanic roots. The surname is familiar across Britain and works as a short, single-syllable call name.
- Origin
- English surname from the medieval personal-name form Hick, with an added -s; also documented as a German patronymic form. Source
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About Hicks
Recorded as a dog’s name
Hicks appears in 4 dog licence records in the 2022 New York City dataset.
How to read this count
These records cover New York City and may count the same dog in more than one licence period. They are not a national popularity ranking.
Pronunciation and rhythm
/hɪks/
US English sound sequence, converted from the CMU dictionary. Stress marks are shown separately.
Stress on the first syllable in the recorded US readings.
View dictionary notation
/hɪks/ · primary stress on syllable 1HH IH1 K S
These are US dictionary readings. Personal, regional and other language pronunciations may differ.
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Sources and research notes (2)
- New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene NYC Dog Licensing Dataset — all seven available extract years, retrieved 24 October 2026 — Recorded name spellings in NYC licence-period rows, extract years 2016–2018, 2022–2024 and 2026. Evidence selects one stated year per name. Annual snapshots overlap; never sum them as unique dogs. No national popularity, etymology or owner naming-intent claim.
- Carnegie Mellon University / CMU Sphinx maintainers CMU US English Pronouncing Dictionary — US English dictionary readings; not owner-specific or exhaustive multilingual pronunciation
References support the individual facts shown. A source link does not mean the entire profile has been verified.