Audrey: noble strength from an Old English name
Audrey means “noble strength,” through the Old English name Æðelþryð. The medieval familiar form became much shorter and easier to recognize on the page, while keeping its connection to an early English saint. English speakers usually pronounce Audrey AW-dree, with the stress on the first of its two syllables.
An Anglo-Saxon name and the foundation at Ely
The older name combines Old English elements meaning noble and strength. It also appears in forms such as Æthelthryth and Etheldreda. Audrey developed as a medieval affectionate version, making it part of a name family that reaches back well before the modern English spelling.
Saint Etheldreda was an East Anglian princess who founded a religious community at Ely in 673. Her foundation stands at the beginning of Ely Cathedral’s long history, and her name remains part of the cathedral’s dedication. The familiar Audrey carries that early medieval connection in a compact form.
The name later acquired an unusual association with the word tawdry, which developed from St Audrey and the lace sold at a fair bearing her name. Audrey became uncommon toward the end of the Middle Ages before returning in the nineteenth century. Its history includes both that decline and a later revival.
Audrey Hepburn beyond the screen
Audrey Hepburn gave the name a lasting cinematic association. She trained in ballet before entering acting, and the writer Colette chose her for the title role in the Broadway production of Gigi. Roman Holiday, opposite Gregory Peck, became an important early film role in her international career.
Her later public work included a deep commitment to children. She served as a UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador from 1988 until her death in 1993. Soon after her appointment, she traveled to Ethiopia to see emergency operations responding to famine caused by drought and conflict.
Hepburn then spoke about those projects in interviews across North America and Europe. Her advocacy drew on her own experience of receiving relief after the Second World War. That work gives Audrey another significant association alongside the films and photographs for which Hepburn is widely remembered.
Audrey and its relatives
Audra and Audrea are related English forms, while Audie is an established familiar form. Etheldreda preserves more of the older name’s length; German Edeltraud belongs to the same historical family.
Audrey itself has a strong opening vowel and a final ee sound. Its two-syllable rhythm is much more compact than Etheldreda, making the relationship between the modern name and its ancient ancestor less obvious at first glance.
American popularity
Audrey reached its best U.S. girl-name rank of 33 in 2013. Its largest annual count followed in 2015, with 5,613 births, when it ranked 37.
It ranked 60 in 2020 and 86 in 2025. Audrey therefore remains within the American top 100 after its recent peak, carrying an Old English meaning and a particularly recognizable twentieth-century cultural history.
Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution
Meaning and history draw on the references below. American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling; counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.
How popular is Audrey?
In 2025, Audrey ranked #86 among girls in the United States, with 2,919 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1881; its largest annual count was 5,613 in 2015. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.