Find out how popular the last name Audrey is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Audrey.

Audrey, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Audrey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Audrey in America

Audrey is the 100791st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Audrey surname appeared 179 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Audrey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Audrey to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Audrey

The surname Audrey has its origins in the medieval Anglo-Norman French name Audri or Audrey. This name is believed to have derived from the Old English words 'ead', meaning prosperous or wealthy, and 'ric', meaning power or rule. It was initially an aristocratic name given to those of noble descent.

The name Audrey can be traced back to the late 11th century in England, shortly after the Norman Conquest of 1066. It appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of land ownership and tax assessment commissioned by William the Conqueror.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Audrey is found in the Pipe Rolls of Cambridgeshire, dated 1166, where a man named Audri de Bur is mentioned. Another early reference is in the Curia Regis Rolls of Norfolk in 1201, which lists a Thomas Audry.

The name Audrey was particularly prevalent in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex in eastern England during the Middle Ages. It is believed to have originated from the Old English place name 'Audry' or 'Audrey's Island', which was located in the marshes of Essex.

In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Audrey was Sir James Audrey (c.1230-1272), a wealthy landowner and Lord of the Manor of Risby in Suffolk. Another prominent individual was Sir Thomas Audrey (c.1390-1460), a Member of Parliament for Norfolk during the reign of Henry VI.

During the Renaissance period, a famous bearer of the surname was John Audrey (1605-1662), an English clergyman and biographer who wrote 'The Life and Work of John Wycliffe' and served as the Rector of St. Giles Church in London.

In the 18th century, Robert Audrey (1716-1784) was a distinguished English botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of plant life and authored several botanical works.

Another notable figure was Sir John Audrey (1786-1856), a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and was knighted for his military service.

Throughout its history, the surname Audrey has also had various spellings, including Audri, Audry, Awdry, and Awdrey, reflecting the evolving language and regional variations in pronunciation and orthography.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Audrey

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Audrey.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Audrey was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Audrey has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Audrey was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Audrey, please contact us.

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