Audrey () is an English feminine

given name A given name (also known as a forename or first name) is the part of a personal name quoted in that identifies a person, potentially with a middle name as well, and differentiates that person from the other members of a group (typically a fa ...

. It is the

Anglo-Norman Anglo-Norman may refer to: *Anglo-Normans, the medieval ruling class in England following the Norman conquest of 1066 * Anglo-Norman language **Anglo-Norman literature * Anglo-Norman England, or Norman England, the period in English history from 10 ...

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 Etheldred Anna Maria Benett (22 July 1776 – 11 January 1845) was an early English geologist often credited with being the first female geologist, having devoted much of her life to collecting and studying fossils that she discovered in South ...

(1776–1845). In the 17th century, the name of ''Saint Audrey'' gave rise to the adjective ''tawdry'' "cheap and pretentious; cheaply adorned". The lace necklaces sold to pilgrims to Saint Audrey fell out of fashion in the 17th century, and so tawdry was reinterpreted as meaning cheap or vulgar. 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 In the history of the 20th century, the interwar period lasted from 11 November 1918 to 1 September 1939 (20 years, 9 months, 21 days), the end of the First World War to the beginning of the Second World War. The interwar period was relativel ...

, 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.Audrey
Behind the Name

People

Audrey Marie Anderson Audrey Marie Anderson (born March 7, 1975) is an American actress and model. She is best known for her role as Kim Brown in the CBS action-drama series ''The Unit'' (2006–2009) and her recurring roles as DC character Lyla Michaels (Arrowverse) ...

(born 1975), American actress and model *

Audrey Assad Audrey Nicole Assad (born July 1, 1983) is an American singer-songwriter. She has released six studio albums and four EPs. Early life Audrey Assad's mother was from Virginia and her father is a Syrian-born refugee. She was raised Protestant, ...

(born 1983), American contemporary Christian musician *

Audrey Azoulay Audrey Azoulay (; born 4 August 1972) is a French civil servant and politician who has been serving as the Director-General of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) since 2017, becoming the second female le ...

(born 1972), French civil servant and politician * Audrey Barcio (born 1978), American visual artist * Audrey Brown (1913–2005), British athlete * Audrey Cameron, polymer chemist working at the University of Edinburgh * Audrey Chapman (1899–1993), American actress *

Audrey De Montigny Audrey De Montigny (born July 26, 1985) is a Canadian former singer. She placed fourth on the debut season of ''Canadian Idol''. De Montigny was nominated for a 2005 Juno Award for her eponymous debut album. Career Her career began in 2003, ...

(born 1985), French-Canadian singer *

Audrey Donnithorne Audrey Gladys Donnithorne (27 November 1922, Santai County, Sichuan, Republic of China – 9 June 2020, Hong Kong) was a British-Chinese political economist and missionary, prominent in her efforts to rebuild the Catholic Church in China after t ...

(1922–2020), British missionary and political economist *

Audrey Dufeu-Schubert Audrey Dufeu-Schubert (born 3 June 1980) is a French politician of La République En Marche! (LREM) who has been serving as a member of the French National Assembly since 18 June 2017, representing the 8th constituency of the department of L ...

(born 1980), French politician * Audrey Dwyer, Canadian actor and playwright * Audrey Emery (1904–1971), American socialite and wife of Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich of Russia * Audrey Fagan, Australian police officer *

Audrey Flack Audrey L. Flack (born May 30, 1931) is an American artist. Her work pioneered the art genre of photorealism and encompasses painting, sculpture, and photography. Flack has numerous academic degrees, including both a graduate and an honorary doct ...

(born 1931), American artist * Audrey Fleurot (born 1977), French actress * Audrey Girouard, Canadian computer scientist and professor * Audrey Gordon, Canadian politician *

Audrey Hepburn Audrey Hepburn (born Audrey Kathleen Ruston; 4 May 1929 – 20 January 1993) was a British actress and humanitarian. Recognised as both a film and fashion icon, she was ranked by the American Film Institute as the AFI's 100 Years...100 Stars, t ...

(1929–1993), Belgian-born British actress and fashion model * Audrey Marie Hilley (1933-1987), American murderer * Audrey Hochberg (1933–2005), New York politician *

Audrey Evelyn Jones Audrey Evelyn Jones (15 October 1929 – 16 August 2014) was an English teacher and campaigner for women's rights. She joined the staff of the St Cyres School in the Vale of Glamorgan in 1960 and rose to the position of deputy head teacher. Dur ...

(1929–2014), British teacher and women's rights campaigner *

Audrey Kitching Audrey Lynn Kitching (born July 26, 1985) is an American fashion blogger, model, and fashion designer, known for her "pink hair and Lisa Frank vibe". Kitching is the owner and founder of an online New Age store called Crystal Cactus. In Febr ...

(born 1985), American model, fashion designer, and fashion blogger *

Audrey Landers Audrey Landers (born Audrey Hamburg; July 18, 1956) is an American actress and singer, best known for her role as Afton Cooper on the television series ''Dallas'' and her role as Val Clarke in the film version of ''A Chorus Line'' (1985). Early ...

(born 1956), American actress *

Audrey Lawson-Johnston The was a UK-registered ocean liner that was torpedoed by an Imperial German Navy U-boat during the First World War on 7 May 1915, about off the Old Head of Kinsale, Ireland. The attack took place in the declared maritime war-zone around th ...

(1915–2001), last survivor of the shipwreck ''Lusitania'' * Audrey Linkenheld (born 1973), French politician *

Audrey Long Audrey Gwendoline Long (April 14, 1922 – September 19, 2014) was an American stage and screen actress of English descent, who performed mainly in low-budget films in the 1940s and early 1950s. Some of her more notable film performances are in '' ...

(1922–2014), American actress *

Audrey Luna Audrey Elizabeth Luna (born in Salem, Oregon) is an American soprano who won a Grammy Award in 2014 for Best Opera Recording of Thomas Adès's opera '' The Tempest'' and is the record holder for singing the highest written note at the Metropolitan ...

, American operatic soprano * Audrey Malte, a name used to refer to Ethelreda Malte (died 1559), alleged illegitimate daughter of Henry VIII *

Audrey McLaughlin Audrey Marlene McLaughlin (née Brown; born November 8, 1936) is a Canadian politician and former leader of the New Democratic Party from 1989 to 1995. She was the first female leader of a political party with representation in the House of Co ...

(born 1936), Canadian politician, former leader of the New Democratic Party *

Audrey Meadows Audrey Meadows ( Cotter, February 8, 1922 – February 3, 1996) was an American actress best known for her role as the deadpan housewife The Honeymooners#Alice Kramden, Alice Kramden on the 1950s American television comedy ''The Honeymooners''. ...

(1922–1996), American actress * Audrey Meaney (born 1931), British archaeologist *

Audrey Mestre Audrey Mestre (11 August 1974 – 15 October 2002) was a French world record-setting freediver. Early life Mestre was born in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis, to a family of snorkeling and scuba diving enthusiasts. She began swimming when s ...

(1974–2002), French athlete *

Audrey Morris Audrey Morris (November 12, 1928 – April 1, 2018) was an American singer and pianist who specialized in jazz ballads. Biography Morris was born on November 12, 1928, in Chicago. Morris grew up on the South Side of Chicago and had classical ...

(1928–2018), American jazz singer *

Audrey Munson Audrey Marie Munson (June 8, 1891 – February 20, 1996) was an American model (person), artist's model and film actress, considered to be "America's first supermodel." In her time, she was variously known as "Miss Manhattan", the "Panama–Paci ...

(1891–1996), American model and actress * Audrey Niffenegger (born 1963), American novelist *

Audrey Ong Pei Ling The Orchard Towers double murders was the case of two deaths occurring at Balmoral Park, Singapore, before the victims' bodies were discovered at a carpark in Orchard Towers, thus the title of the case. The victims were 46-year-old Kho Nai Gua ...

(born 1980), Singaporean criminal and accomplice of British convicted killer

Michael McCrea The Orchard Towers double murders was the case of two deaths occurring at Balmoral Park, Singapore, before the victims' bodies were discovered at a carpark in Orchard Towers, thus the title of the case. The victims were 46-year-old Kho Nai Gua ...

Audrey Osborne, Duchess of Leeds John Francis Godolphin Osborne, 11th Duke of Leeds (12 March 1901 – 26 July 1963) was a British peer. He was the son of George Godolphin Osborne, 10th Duke of Leeds and Lady Katherine Frances Lambton. He succeeded to the title of 11th Duke of ...

, British aristocrat *

Audrey Patterson Audrey ("Mickey") Patterson (September 27, 1926 — August 23, 1996) was the first African-American woman to win an Olympic medal; she won a bronze medal in the 200-meter dash at the 1948 Olympic Games in London. Biography Patterson was born ...

(1926–1996), American athlete *

Audrey Penn Audrey Penn is an American children's writer. She is best known for writing '' The Kissing Hand'', a picture book featuring anthropomorphic raccoons. Biography Audrey Penn grew up in Silver Spring, Maryland. Audrey Penn didn’t start off he ...

(born 1947), American author *

Audrey Richards Audrey Isabel Richards, CBE, FRAI, FBA (8 July 1899 – 29 June 1984), was a pioneering British social anthropologist. She produced notable ethnographic studies. The most famous of which is ''Chisingu: A Girl's initiation ceremony among the B ...

(1899–1984), British anthropologist * Audrey Riley, cellist and string arranger based in the UK *

Audrey Stuckes Audrey Doris Jones ( ; 15 September 192326 September 2006) was an English material scientist and a senior lecturer in the department of applied acoustics at the University of Salford. She made important contributions to the theory of the John ...

(1923–2006), British material scientist * Audrey Tang (born 1981), Taiwanese software programmer * Audrey Tautou (born 1976), French actress *

Audrey Terras Audrey Anne Terras (born September 10, 1942) is an American mathematician who works primarily in number theory. Her research has focused on quantum chaos and on various types of zeta functions. Early life and education Audrey Terras was born Sept ...

(born 1942), American mathematician *

Audrey Totter Audrey Mary Totter (December 20, 1917 – December 12, 2013) was an American radio, film, and television actress and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer contract player in the 1940s. Early life Audrey – some sources indicate "Audra" – Totter w ...

(1918–2013), American actress * Audrey Wasilewski (born 1967), American voice actress *

Audrey Wells Audrey Ann Wells (''née'' Lederer; January 25, 1960 – October 4, 2018) was an American screenwriter, film director, and producer. Her 1999 film ''Guinevere'' won the Waldo Salt Screenwriting Award. Early life Wells was born in San Francisco, ...

(1960–2018), American film director and screenwriter *

Audrey Williamson Audrey Doreen Swayne Williamson (''later Mitchell'') (28 September 1926 – 29 April 2010)Audrey Whitby, American actress

Fictional characters

* Audrey Anderson, in the 2010 film ''Legion'' * Audrey Belrose, a dateable character in the dating simulation video game

Huniepop ''HuniePop'' is a tile-matching and dating sim adult video game created by American game designer Ryan Koons, under the alias of HuniePot. The game was released for Microsoft Windows, macOS, and Linux-based personal computers in January 2015, aft ...

*Audrey Bourgeois, in the animated series '' Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug and Cat Noir'' * Audrey fforbes-Hamilton, in the BBC television sitcom ''

To the Manor Born ''To the Manor Born'' is a BBC television sitcom that first aired on BBC1 from 1979 to 1981. A special one-off episode was produced in 2007. Starring Penelope Keith and Peter Bowles, the first 20 episodes and the 2007 special were written by ...

'' * Audrey Fulquard, heroine of ''

The Little Shop of Horrors ''The Little Shop of Horrors'' is a 1960 American horror comedy film directed by Roger Corman. Written by Charles B. Griffith, the film is a farce about an inadequate florist's assistant who cultivates a plant that feeds on human blood. The fi ...

'', and her namesake "Audrey Jr." or "Audrey II" * Audrey Gordon, played by Heidi Areana in the satirical Australian television cooking series ''

Audrey's Kitchen ''Audrey's Kitchen'' is a satirical television cooking series produced by Working Dog Productions in Melbourne, Australia, for ABC Television. Each episode is only three minutes in length and features fictional writer, chef, life coach and chor ...

'' * Audrey Hanson, in the television series ''

Heroes Heroes or Héroes may refer to: * Hero, one who displays courage and self-sacrifice for the greater good Film * ''Heroes'' (1977 film), an American drama * ''Heroes'' (2008 film), an Indian Hindi film Gaming * ''Heroes of Might and Magic'' ...

'' * Audrey Hope, on the 2021 ''

Gossip Girl ''Gossip Girl'' is an American teen drama television series based on the novel series of the same name written by Cecily von Ziegesar. The series, developed for television by Josh Schwartz and Stephanie Savage, ran on The CW network for six sea ...

'' TV series * Audrey Horne, on the television series ''

Twin Peaks ''Twin Peaks'' is an American Mystery fiction, mystery serial drama television series created by Mark Frost and David Lynch. It premiered on American Broadcasting Company, ABC on April 8, 1990, and originally ran for two seasons until its cance ...

'' * Audrey Parker-Nichols, in the Nickelodeon sitcom ''

Drake & Josh ''Drake & Josh'' is an American teen sitcom created by Dan Schneider for Nickelodeon. The series follows two teenage stepbrothers Drake Parker (Drake Bell) and Josh Nichols (Josh Peck) as they live together despite opposite personalities. The ser ...

'' *

Audrey Raines The following is a list of characters in the American serial drama television series '' 24'', '' 24: Live Another Day'', and '' 24: Legacy'' by season and event. The list first names the actor, followed by the character. Some characters have their ...

, in television series ''24'' * Audrey Reede, in the film ''

Liar Liar ''Liar Liar'' is a 1997 American comedy film directed by Tom Shadyac, and written by Paul Guay and Stephen Mazur. It stars Jim Carrey as a lawyer who built his entire career on lying, but finds himself cursed to speak only the truth for a singl ...

'' *

Audrey Roberts Audrey Roberts (also Potter) is a fictional character from the ITV soap opera ''Coronation Street'', played by Sue Nicholls. Audrey made her first appearance on 16 April 1979 and appeared on a recurring basis for three years until April 1982. ...

, on the British soap opera ''

Coronation Street ''Coronation Street'' is an English soap opera created by Granada Television and shown on ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres around a cobbled, terraced street in Weatherfield, a fictional town based on inner-city Salford. Origi ...

'' * Audrey Rose, from the novel, '' Audrey Rose'', and its adaptations * Audrey Safranek, in the film, '' Downsizing'' * Audrey Turfe, in Ben Jonson's ''A Tale of a Tub'' * Audrey, in the eponymous 1902 novel by

Mary Johnston Mary Johnston (November 21, 1870 – May 9, 1936) was an American novelist and women's rights advocate from Virginia. She was one of America's best selling authors during her writing career and had three silent films adapted from her novels. Jo ...

, and its 1916 silent film adaptation * Audrey, in Shakespeare's ''

As You Like It ''As You Like It'' is a pastoral comedy by William Shakespeare believed to have been written in 1599 and first published in the First Folio in 1623. The play's first performance is uncertain, though a performance at Wilton House in 1603 has b ...

'' * Little Audrey, a cartoon character who was mainly popular during the 1950s and 1960s *Audrey Sharma, in the 2012 Disney Channel film ''

Radio Rebel ''Radio Rebel'' is a 2012 teen drama television film based on a novel titled ''Shrinking Violet''. The movie premiered on Disney Channel in the United States on February 17, 2012 and YTV in Canada on March 9, 2012. The movie was produced by ...

'' * Audrey Smith Bertha, on ''

Harvey Girls Forever! ''Harvey Girls Forever!'' (originally titled ''Harvey Street Kids'' in its first season, then retroactively retitled) is an American animated comedy television series produced by Brendan Hay and Aliki Theofilopoulos for DreamWorks Animation Televi ...

Notes

{{given name Given names Feminine given names English feminine given names French feminine given names

People

Fictional characters

See also

Notes