Name Audrey - meaning, origin, numerology

Audrey /ˈɔːdri/ is an English feminine given name. It is the Anglo-Norman form of the Anglo-Saxon name Æðelþryð, composed of the elements æðel "noble" and þryð "strength". The Anglo-Norman form of the name was applied to Saint Audrey (d. 679), also known by the historical form of her name as Saint Æthelthryth. The same name also survived into the modern period in its Anglo-Saxon form, as Etheldred, e.g. Etheldred Benett (1776–1845).

In the 17th century, the name of Saint Audrey gave rise to the adjective tawdry "cheap and pretentious; cheaply adorned" (after a fair of St. Audrey where cheap lace was sold). As a consequence, use of the name declined, but it was revived in the 19th century. Popularity of the name in the United States peaked in the interbellum period, but it fell below rank 100 in popularity by 1940 and was not frequently given in the later half of the 20th century; Audrey was the 173rd most common name for females in the United States in the 1990 census. its popularity has again been on the rise since the 2000s, reaching rank 100 in 2002 and rank 41 in 2012. It was also ranked in the top 100 most common names for girls in France, Belgium, and Canada in the 2000s.

English: drastically reduced form of the Old English female name Æðelpryð, composed of the elements æðel noble + pryð strength. This was the name of a 6th-century saint (normally known by the Latinized form of her name, Etheldreda), who was a particular favourite in the Middle Ages. According to tradition she died from a tumour of the neck, which she bore stoically as a divine punishment for her youthful delight in fine necklaces. The name went into a decline at the end of the Middle Ages, when it came to be considered vulgar, being associated with tawdry, that is, lace and other goods sold at fairs held in her name (the word deriving from a misdivision of Saint Audrey). Shakespeare bestowed it on Touchstone's comic sweetheart in As You Like It. In the last century such associations have largely been forgotten, and the name has enjoyed some revival of popularity. The form Audra is also used, especially in the southern United States in double names such as Audra Jo and Audra Rose.

The section "History and Origin" of this page contains content from the copyrighted Wikipedia article "Audrey"; that content is used under the GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL). You may redistribute it, verbatim or modified, providing that you comply with the terms of the GFDL.