embrisa.
embrisa.
Theme
Masculine

Andrew

/ˈæn.dru/

Manly, brave

Greek

How to say it

AN · drew

/ˈæn.dru/

What it means

Greek Andreas, 'manly' or 'brave,' from anēr, 'man.' One of the twelve apostles in the New Testament, and the patron saint of Scotland, Russia, and Greece.

Andrew comes from the Greek Andreas, built on anēr ('man, warrior'). The apostle Andrew was Simon Peter's brother and one of Jesus's first followers; tradition has him crucified on an X-shaped cross, the saltire that became Scotland's flag. The name reached England through Christian missionaries and stayed in the top hundred for centuries. In the US it peaked in the 1980s, dipped through the 2010s, and now sits as a quietly classic choice. Andy and Drew are the long-running nicknames, with Drew showing up more often as a given name in its own right since the 1990s.

Popularity over time

#10 #1 #8618802025

peaked at #5 in 1988, currently #73 in 2025.

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, names given to at least 5 babies in a year, 1880–present. See where the names are moving

Heads-up notes

  • Nickname

    Andy and Drew are both current with very different feels: Andy reads warmer, Drew reads sharper. Drew is also a standalone name since the 1990s.

Who's worn it

Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.

  • Saint Andrew the Apostle Simon Peter's brother, patron saint of Scotland and Russia
  • Andrew Jackson 7th US president, on the $20 bill
  • Andrew Garfield Actor, The Social Network and tick, tick... BOOM!

Spelling variants

  • Andre
  • Andrés
  • Andrea (m.)
  • Andreas