Aubrey

Where Aubrey comes from

From Middle English Aubrey, Aubry, from Norman Auberi, Alberi, from Latin Alberīcus, Latinized form of Old High German Alberich, from Proto-Germanic *Albirīks, from *albiz (“elf, fairy”) + *rīks (“king, ruler”). Possibly influenced by Gaulish Albiorīx (literally "ruler of the world"). Cognates include German Alberich and Italian Alberico.
— Wiktionary's entry for Aubrey
  • Germanic
  • 2 syllables
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1872
    Aubrey Beardsley born
    British illustrator and author
  2. 1889
    First appearance
    #1,279 among girls, 5 babies — the first year at least five got the name.
  3. 1974
    Mostly girls from here
    Until now more boys than girls got the name; from this year it's the other way round, and has stayed that way.
  4. 1984
    Aubrey Plaza born
    American actress, producer and comedian
  5. 2012
    Peak, #15
    8,061 babies named Aubrey — more than any year before or since.
  6. 2020
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #56.
In the dictionary
  • An English patronymic surname.
  • A male given name from the Germanic languages or transferred from the surname.
  • A female given name transferred from the surname, of 1970s and later American usage.
Namesakes
  • Aubrey Plaza · American actress, producer and comedian, born 1984
  • Aubrey Beardsley · British illustrator and author, 1872–1898
  • Aubrey de Grey · British writer and biomedical gerontologist, born 1963

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.