Audrey

Audrey is a much more interesting name than you might think. First, if you've spent any time reading name dictionaries, you've probably run across the Old English name Etheldreda, which means "noble strength." Audrey is, according to Ask Oxford derived from Etheldreda, so the meaning is the same. The Old English version is Ædhelþrydh, and Etheldreda is the Latin version of that. Anyone who has read a biography of actress Audrey Hepburn will almost certainly agree that this is one case where the meaning of a name matched the person perfectly--Audrey Hepburn was truly a Great Lady, and one whose life required a lot of that noble strength. Saint Audrey (known as Etheldreda in her own time, apparently,) lived in the sixth century. She was apparently something of a religious fanatic from the word "go," because she took a vow of perpetual chastity, but was married twice anyway. Her first husband knew about her chastity vow (men do love a challenge.) Later in life Audrey developed a large and unsightly tumor on her neck. She considered this a just punishment for the fact that she'd worn so many necklaces in her younger days. In the Middle Ages she was a popular saint, and Saint Audrey's Fair was held on her feast day (October 17th.) The fair naturally sold many necklaces and neckerchiefs, and they became famous for their cheapness and low quality. From this we now have the word tawdry, a shortening of "Saint Audrey." Because of this, by the end of the Middle Ages the name became much less popular. Shakespeare's use of the name in As You Like It, plus its status as a saint's name, guaranteed that Audrey would not become an obsolete name, and eventually it came back into use--most people no longer even aware that Audrey and tawdry were anything more than a convenient rhyme. The name Audrey has remained in constant but not overwhelming use in the U.S. for at least the last 100 years. In the early 1900's it was occasionally given to boys, but is now nearly exclusively a girl's name. Audrey is also apparently a popular name in France. Most people probably think of Audrey Hepburn first when they hear the name Audrey, but some might also think of Audrey Hardy a character from the television soap opera General Hospital.