English surname
Son of Andrew
Patronymic surname (from a father's name)
Anderson is a patronymic meaning 'son of Andrew'. Andrew, from the Greek for 'manly', was popularized by the cult of St Andrew, patron saint of Scotland. The surname is especially common in Scotland and northern England, where the '-son' ending was the standard way of forming patronymics.
Variants include Andersen (in Scandinavian contexts) and Andrews. Anderson remains one of the most frequent surnames of Scottish origin and reflects the strong influence of the given name Andrew in northern Britain.
Build a family tree with everyone's actual names, photos and relationships.
Son of Andrew. From the given name Andrew plus "-son"; also extremely common in Scotland and Scandinavia.
Anderson is a English-origin surname. Popularity varies widely by country and region, and the same surname can be common in one place and rare in another.
Yes. Surnames, especially occupational and descriptive ones like this, were often adopted independently by many unrelated families who happened to share a trade, appearance, or location.
No account or personal details are required to look up a surname's meaning - this page is static reference content.