Anders
A masculine Scandinavian name derived from the Old Norse "Andr" meaning warrior.
Name Census estimates that about 7,456 living Americans carry the first name Anders. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Anders today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Anders births was 2014 (316 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Anders. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
7.5K
~ 1 in 45,970 Americans
Peak year
2014
316 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2024 SSA rank
#830
Tracked since 1912
Gender
Gender distribution for Anders
Out of the 7,798 babies given the name Anders since 1880, 99.9% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Anders as a male name
- Ranked #830 in 2024
- 297 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2014 (316 births)
Anders as a female name
- Ranked #15,420 in 2024
- 5 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2024 (5 births)
Popularity
Anders: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Anders from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 2,592 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Anders remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Anders by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Anders during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Anders' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 36 states and territories. Minnesota, California, Washington recorded the most babies named Anders, while Kansas, Connecticut, Alaska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 135 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Anders
The name Anders has its roots in the ancient Germanic languages, where it originated as a masculine name. It is a compound name derived from the Old Norse elements "andr-" meaning "man" and "-r" meaning "warrior" or "soldier." Thus, the name Anders translates to "man-warrior" or "manly warrior."
The earliest recorded use of the name dates back to the 8th century, where it appears in Old Norse sagas and records. During the Viking Age, the name was popular among Scandinavian warriors and seafarers, reflecting the culture's emphasis on strength, courage, and valor.
One of the earliest known historical figures bearing the name Anders was Anders Sunesen, a Danish archbishop who lived from around 1167 to 1228. He played a significant role in the political and religious affairs of Denmark during his time.
In the 14th century, Anders Pedersen, a Danish nobleman and military commander, gained prominence for his role in the struggles between Denmark and Sweden. He lived from around 1300 to 1367.
The name continued to be popular in Scandinavia throughout the Middle Ages and into the modern era. One notable figure was Anders Celsius, the Swedish astronomer and physicist who devised the Celsius temperature scale. He lived from 1701 to 1744.
Another famous bearer of the name was Anders Zorn, a Swedish painter and etcher who achieved international acclaim for his portraits and nudes. He lived from 1860 to 1920 and is considered one of Sweden's most renowned artists.
In more recent history, Anders Behring Breivik, a Norwegian far-right terrorist responsible for the 2011 Norway attacks, brought notoriety to the name. He was born in 1979 and is currently serving a maximum sentence of 21 years in prison.
While the name Anders has ancient Germanic roots and a long history in Scandinavia, it has also gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly in English-speaking countries, due to increased cultural exchange and migration.
People
Anders + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Anders as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Anders: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Anders?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 7,456 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Anders going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 45,970 US residents.
Is Anders a common name?
We classify Anders as "Rare". It ranks above 97.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 7,798 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Anders most popular?
The single biggest year for Anders was 2014, when 316 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Anders is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Anders a male name?
Yes, 99.9% of people registered as Anders in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.