Dandridge
An English surname probably from a place name, most likely meaning “from Tandridge.”
The #7,876 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 73,493 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually explained as a spelling change from the English place-name Tandridge, in Surrey. The leading idea is that the initial T shifted to D in pronunciation and spelling, producing Dandridge as a surname form. The place-name itself is older and likely contains an element meaning “ridge,” though the surname chiefly preserves the locational link rather than the full place-name history.
History
Bardsley explicitly treats Dandridge as a local surname, “of Tandridge,” and notes the T-to-D change as a common kind of variation. The name appears in English records by the late 17th century in the examples cited by Bardsley. Later surname compilations repeat the same derivation, so the locational explanation is well established in the older literature.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley grouped Dandridge with other surnames that changed their initial consonant over time, showing how flexible spelling could be in early records.
From the historical record
“for Chandler, Hazleteen or Hazletine for Hazledean, Prout for Proud, Thring for Dring, Henty for Hendy, Rayment for Raymond, or Dottridge for Doddridge. On the other hand we find Dandridge for Tandridge, Dibble for Tibbie, Ditchburn for Titchbum, Doc^ood for Toogood, or Dunnicliff for Tunnicliffe. A good instance…”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances