In Scotland, the name first appeared in records of the 14th century as "Fitz Andreu" (meaning son of Andrew), and developed in various forms by the Scottish Gaelic patronymic of "MacGhilleAndrais" which means "servant of St. Andrew".
[citation needed] Anderson is the eighth most frequent surname in Scotland and 52nd most common in England.
[3][4] The name is also found to a lesser extent in northern Germany, e.g. the German vocalist Lale Andersen (1905–1972).
The name was the eleventh most common surname reported in the 1990 United States census, accounting for 0.3% of the population.
[8] Other spelling variations include: Andison, Andersonne, Andersoun, Andirsoone, Andresoun, Androson, Andirston, Andresson, Andrewson, and Andresen.