Anderson

AN·der·sən · 3 syllables

Anderson is distinctive.

Meaning: Son of Andrew

91/100

Strong Practical Fit

Balanced across pronunciation, everyday use, lifetime fit and international use.

Name Profile

Pronunciation & Spelling
Clear, with one common misreading
A documented English pronunciation is on file: AN-der-sən. Commonly mispronounced as AN-der-son with equal stress on all three syllables, rather than the natural AN-der-sən reduction.
91/100
Everyday Use
Low risk
Shortens naturally in everyday use, to one established short form.
95/100
Growing Up
Strong lifetime fit
Works comfortably across child and adult settings.
82/100
International Use
Broad international fit
Works cleanly across the assessed languages and writing systems.
85/100

NAME DETAILS

COMMON FORMS: Andy
OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS: Andersen; Anderssen

ORIGIN & HISTORY

About the name

Son of Andrew (Andrew itself deriving from Greek "andreios," meaning "manly, brave").

As a surname, Anderson is documented from the 13th century: the earliest English record traces to William Andreu in 1237 Buckinghamshire charters, and it appeared in 14th-century Scottish records as "Fitz Andreu" ("son of Andrew"), evolving from the Scottish Gaelic patronymic "MacGhilleAndrais" ("servant of St. Andrew"). It became one of the most common surnames in Scotland (8th most frequent) and grew further in North America as Scandinavian immigrants' "Andersen"/"Anderssen" surnames were frequently anglicized to "Anderson," making it the 11th most common surname in the 1990 US Census. Its use as a given name (rather than surname) is a comparatively recent development, part of the broader trend of surname-to-first-name transfer.

POPULARITY

Anderson over time

United States

#363RANK

Rank #363 gives national context, not a classroom forecast.

Uncommon in current U.S. usage. Ranked #363 in the U.S., 2025.

SourceU.S. Social Security Administration · 2025 release

Pronunciation & Forms

SAY IT

AN·der·sən

STRESS ON THE FIRST SYLLABLE

COMMON FORMS

Andy

OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS

AndersenDA/NO
AnderssenSV
Ânderson (Portuguese submitted form)

PRACTICAL LIFE

How This Name Lives

AT SCHOOL & DAY TO DAY

A long, formal-sounding name for a young child, though it shortens naturally to informal nicknames (e.g. Andy) for everyday childhood use.

Cultural Footprint

Functions today mainly as a modern given name transferred from a patronymic surname; in surname use it is strongly associated with Scottish clan identity (tied to Andrew as Scotland's patron saint) and, separately, with Scandinavian immigrant families in North America whose "-sen" surnames (Andersen, Anderssen) were commonly anglicized to "Anderson."

More about Anderson

FORMALITY

Functions as a full formal given name in its own right; "Andy" serves as an informal short form, though it is not universally used since Anderson is already a complete name rather than a nickname needing expansion.

Names around it

Andrew

EDITORIAL SYNTHESIS

The Decision

Anderson is spelled without unusual letter patterns, and it holds up in everyday use. Surname-dependent compatibility remains unassessed until a surname is added.

STRENGTH

A documented English pronunciation is on file. Uses standard characters that systems widely handle cleanly.

BEST FIT

Everyday Use is the strongest-scoring part of this name — no obvious nickname traps, rhymes, or initial issues detected.

FULL-NAME CHECK