Andreas — Meaning, Origin & Everything to Know

Andreas is an Greek name whose meaning — 'manly, strong' — gives it a quiet depth beyond its sound. As a son's name, Andreas suggests resilience, power and steadfastness and travels comfortably across languages. Andreas appeals to families after a name with real roots — here, the Greek word for 'manly, strong'.

What Does the Name Andreas Mean?

Andreas means 'manly, strong', a sense it draws straight from its Greek roots.

The early history of Andreas belongs to the Greek world, where 'manly, strong' was a quality worth naming a child for. Andreas survived centuries of use precisely because 'manly, strong' stayed legible — the meaning never drifted far.

Today Andreas reads as approachable and contemporary, even though its meaning of 'manly, strong' is anything but new. It is exactly this balance that lifted Andreas into wider use in the 2010s.

Symbolically, Andreas leans toward resilience, power and steadfastness, with its Greek roots adding heritage to that idea.

Origin & Etymology of Andreas

Greek · Greek

Trace Andreas back and you reach Greek and the meaning 'manly, strong'. Andreas spread outward with migration, recognised now well beyond its Greek origin and worn across very different cultures.

Within Greek culture, Andreas connects to enduring values through its idea of resilience, power and steadfastness.

How Greek names are chosen

Greek naming is close to an algorithm, which is why the same names recur down a family for centuries: the eldest son takes his paternal grandfather's name and the eldest daughter her paternal grandmother's, with later children drawing on the mother's side. The name is usually settled within the first week or ten days, the christening following at around forty days, and by custom the godfather has the final word. Because so many names are saints' names, most Greeks keep a name day — the saint's feast — as well as a birthday, and it is often the more sociable of the two. Regional patron saints show up plainly in the distribution: Spyridon clusters on Corfu, Gerasimos on Kefalonia, Dionysios on Zakynthos.

How to Pronounce Andreas

AND-reas — Andreas is usually said in 2 parts — AND · reas. From Greek roots: vowels are open and clearly sounded.