Ralph
Ralph is a male name of English origin, derived from the Old English Rædwulf and Old High German Radulf, cognate with the Old Norse Raðulfr.
The most common forms are:Ralph, the common variant form in English, which takes either of the given pronunciations.Rafe, variant form which is less common; this spelling is always pronounced.Raif, a very rare variant.Ralf, the traditional variant form in Dutch, German, Swedish, and Polish.Ralfs, the traditional variant form in Latvian.Raoul, the traditional variant form in French.Raúl, the traditional variant form in Spanish.Raul, the traditional variant form in Portuguese and Italian.Raül, the traditional variant form in Catalan.Rádhulbh, the traditional variant form in Irish.Rauf, a Turkish variant and the name of Rauf Denktas. He was the founder of Northern Cyprus.
First name
Middle Ages
- Ralph the Timid, pre-Conquest Norman earl of Hereford, England
- Ralph de Gael, the Earl of East Anglia and Lord of Gaël and Montfort, leader of the Revolt of the Earls
- Ralph d'Escures, Abbot of Séez, Bishop of Rochester and Archbishop of Canterbury
- Ralph (administrator), Bishop of Bethlehem
- Ralph de Warneville, twentieth Lord Chancellor of England as well as later Bishop of Lisieux in Normandy
- Ralph de Diceto, archdeacon of Middlesex, dean of St Paul's Cathedral, and author of two chronicles, the Abbreviationes chronicorum and the Ymagines historiarum
- Ralph Neville, Archbishop of Canterbury
- Ralph de Maidstone, Bishop of Hereford
- Ralph Baldock, Bishop of London and Lord Chancellor of England in 1307
- Ralph Stratford, Bishop of London
- Ralph de Neville, 1st Earl of Westmorland, English peer
- Ralph Percy, English knight
- Saint Ralph Sherwin, Catholic saint and English martyr
Modern world
- Ralph Abercromby, Scottish soldier and politician
- Ralph Abernathy, American civil rights leader and minister
- Ralph Abraham (mathematician), American mathematician
- Ralph Abraham (politician), American politician
- Ralph Adams Cram, American architect
- Ralf Akoto, German judoka
- Ralph Allen (disambiguation)
- Ralph Babet, Australian politician
- Ralph Backstrom, Canadian hockey player
- Ralph Bakshi, American director of animated and live-action films
- Ralph Barbieri, American sports radio personality
- Ralph Henry Barbour, American novelist, primarily sports fiction for boys
- Ralf Baartmans, Dutch DJ and music producer known as Ralvero
- Ralph Bass, American record producer and talent scout
- Ralph Beard, American basketball player
- Ralf Becker, German footballer, coach and administrator
- Ralph F. Beermann, American politician
- Ralph Bellamy, American actor
- Ralf Bendix, German singer
- Ralph Beebe Blackman, American mathematician and engineer
- Ralph Blane, American composer, lyricist and performer
- Ralph Blegborough, English physician
- Ralf Bochröder, German marathon runner
- Ralph Branca, American baseball player
- Ralph Brinkhaus, German politician
- Ralph Brown, English actor and writer
- Ralph Bunche, American political scientist, academic and diplomat
- Ralph Burns, American songwriter, bandleader, composer, conductor, arranger and bebop pianist
- Ralph Byrd, American actor
- Ralph Carmichael, pop music composer and arranger
- Ralph Chaplin, American writer, artist and labor activist
- Ralph Chase, American football player
- Ralph Coates, English football player
- Ralph Louis Cohen, American mathematician
- Ralph Connor, Canadian novelist and church leader
- Ralph Connor (scientist), American chemist
- Ralph Cook, American jurist from Alabama
- Ralph Cooperman, British fencer
- Ralph D. Cornell, American landscape architect
- Ralph Cudworth, English scholar, cleric and theologian, father of Ralph
- Ralph Cudworth, English philosopher, theologian, leader of the Cambridge Platonists
- Ralph DeLoach, American football player
- Ralph Della-Volpe, American painter, teacher
- Ralph Drollinger, American basketball player and clergyman
- Ralph Earl, American portrait painter
- Ralph Earle, several people
- Ralph Earnhardt, American racing driver and patriarch of the Earnhardt racing family
- Ralph Edwards (disambiguation)
- Ralph Ellison, American novelist, literary critic and scholar
- Ralph Ely, American politician and military officer from Michigan
- Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist, lecturer and poet
- Ralph Emery, American country music disc jockey, radio and television host
- Ralph Fiennes, English actor and director
- Ralph Fletcher, English surgeon and writer
- Ralph Perry Forbes, American neo-Nazi and Arkansas political candidate
- Ralph Foster (disambiguation)
- Ralph A. Gamble, American politician from New York
- Ralph G. Kevorkian, co-pilot in TWA Flight 800 accident in 1996
- Ralph Goldstein, American fencer
- Ralph E. Gomory, American applied mathematician and IBM executive
- Ralph Heywood, American football player
- Ralph Holley, American football player
- Ralph Horween, American football player
- Ralf Hütter, German musician
- Ralph Ince, American pioneer film actor, director and screenwriter
- Ralph Ineson, English actor, narrator, and writer
- Ralph Isselhardt, American football player
- Ralph B. Ives, American businessman
- Ralph Jackson (disambiguation)
- Ralph Jarvis, American football player
- Ralph Jodice, American Air force general
- Ralph Johnson (disambiguation)
- Ralph Jones, American football and basketball coach
- Ralph Kaminski, Polish singer-songwriter
- Ralph Kerr, British naval officer
- Ralph Kiner, American baseball player
- Ralph Klein, Canadian politician fromAlberta
- Ralph Klein (basketball), Israeli basketball player and coach
- Ralph Knibbs, British rugby union player
- Ralph Kuncl, American neurologist and academic
- Ralph Lauren, American fashion designer
- Ralph Maxwell Lewis, American Rosicrucian
- Ralph Liguori, American racing driver
- Ralph Lownie, British judge
- Ralph Macchio, American actor
- Ralph Malone, American football player
- Ralph McQuarrie, American conceptual designer and illustrator, noted for his work in the Star Wars trilogy
- Ralph Michael, English actor
- Ralf Moeller, German actor
- Ralph Morgan, American actor
- Ralph Morgan (rugby), Welsh rugby player
- Ralph Morton, puisne judge of the High Court of Southern Rhodesia
- Ralph Nader, American political activist, author, lecturer and attorney
- Ralf Nentwich, German politician
- Ralph Nichols, English badminton player
- Ralph Nichols (American football), American politician and college football player and coach
- Ralph Northam, American politician
- Ralph O. Olson, American justice from Washington state
- Ralph Percy, 12th Duke of Northumberland, English landowner
- Ralph "Bucky" Phillips, American fugitive
- Ralf Rangnick, German football coach and manager
- Ralph Recto, Filipino politician
- Ralph David Richardson, English actor
- Ralph Sadler, English diplomat, Privy Councillor, Secretary of State and Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster
- Ralph Savarese, American academic, writer, poet, and activist
- Ralf Schumacher, German racing driver
- Ralph Sheheen, motorsport broadcaster
- Ralph Shortey, American politician
- Ralph Siegel, German record producer and songwriter
- Ralph Smart, British film producer and director
- Ralf Socher, Canadian alpine skier
- Ralph Stanley, American musician
- Ralph Terry, American baseball player and golfer
- Ralph Dundas Tindal, Dutch military leader
- Ralph Towner, American multi-instrumentalist, composer and bandleader
- Ralph E. Turner, American historian
- Ralph Vaughan Williams, English composer
- Ralph A. Vaughn, American academic, architect and film set designer
- Ralph Waite, American actor and political activist
- Ralph Waller, Methodist Minister, former Principal of Harris-Manchester College, Oxford, former Pro-Vice Chancellor of Oxford University
- Ralph Wammack, American politician from Missouri
- Ralph Webb (American football), American football player
- Ralph Welker, American politician
- Ralph Wilson, American football team founder and owner
- Ralf Wolter, German actor
- Ralph Yarborough, American politician from Texas
- Ralph Young (disambiguation)
- Ralph Young (singer), American singer and actor
Surname
- Bo Ralph, Swedish linguist
- Brian Ralph, American cartoonist
- Caleb Ralph, New Zealand rugby union footballer
- Damani Ralph, Jamaican football player
- David Ralph, Scottish field hockey forward
- Dicky Ralph, Welsh international rugby player
- Elena Ralph, Miss Israel 2005
- Elsie Reasoner Ralph, first female war correspondent in US history
- Francis James Ralph, British World War I aerial observer flying ace
- Glencora Ralph, Australian water polo player
- Hanna Ralph, German actress
- J. Ralph, American composer, singer/songwriter and producer
- Josh Ralph (athlete), Australian athlete
- James Ralph, American-born English political writer, historian and reviewer
- James Ralph (cricketer), English cricketer
- Jessie Ralph, American actress
- Jolyon Ralph, founder of the mineral database mindat.org in 1993
- Kate Ralph, Welsh composer and pianist
- Kharis Ralph, Canadian former ice dancer
- Mark Ralph (field hockey), Scottish field hockey player
- Michael Ralph, American actor and comedian
- Nathan Ralph, English footballer
- Richard Ralph, British ambassador
- Richard Ralph (Missouri politician), American politician, Missouri senator
- Shea Ralph, American basketball player and coach
- Sheryl Lee Ralph, American actress and singer
Fictional characters
- Ralph Cifaretto, on The Sopranos
- Ralph Furley, on Three's Company
- Ralph Kramden, portrayed by Jackie Gleason on The Honeymooners
- Ralph Malph, on Happy Days
- Ralph Wiggum, on The Simpsons
- Ralph Jones, title character of King Ralph, a 1991 American comedy film starring John Goodman
- the title character of Ralph 124C 41+, a 1911 science fiction novel
- Ralph, in the Wolf and Sheepdog Warner Bros. cartoons
- Ralph, from the comic strip Drabble
- Ralph, from the comic strip Sally Forth
- Ralph Dring, in the UK sitcom Dear John
- Ralph Drang, in the US sitcom Dear John
- Wreck-It Ralph, the title character of the 2012 Disney computer-animated film Wreck-It Ralph
- Ralph, a dog in the animated film Balto III: Wings of Change
- Ralph "Ralphie" Parker, main character/narrator of the 1983 Christmas movie A Christmas Story
- Ralph, a giant wolf monster from the video game Rampage
- The title character from the children's novel The Mouse and the Motorcycle
- Ralph Nickleby, uncle of Nicholas in the novel Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens
- Ralph Rackstraw in the comic opera H.M.S. Pinafore
- Sir Ralph Shawcross from the TV series You Rang, M'Lord?
- Ralph Waldo Simpson, a character on the American television sitcom Gimme a Break
- Ralph Hinkley "Hankley" from the TV series The Greatest American Hero
- Ralph, the main protagonist in William Golding's 1954 novel Lord of the Flies, and also the two film adaptations: the 1963 film and the 1990 film.
- Ralph, on Detroit: Become Human
- Ralf Olsen and Ralf Senior, from the manga series ''No\Name''