This surname is of medieval Scottish origin, and is a patronymic form of the male given name Andrew, itself coming from the Greek "Andreas", a derivative of "andreois", manly, from "aner, andros", man or male. This name was borne by the first of Christ's disciples who preached the Christian faith in the Balkans and in Southern Russia, and he is the patron saint both of Russia and Scotland, his relics having been brought to Scotland in the 4th Century by a certain St. Regulus. He was put to death at Patras (Greece) on an X shaped cross; hence, the term "St. Andrew's Cross", for the design on the Scottish flag. The name was popular in Eastern Europe from early times, but was not used in England before the Norman Conquest; its first recorded appearance is in the Domesday Book of 1086 in its original Greek form "Andreas". From the 12th Century it became a general favourite in England and Scotland, and there are over six hundred churches in England dedicated to this popular saint. Old Gaelic patronymic forms of the name include: "MacAindreis" and "MacGill'Andreis", the Gaelic prefix "Mac" denoting "son of", and "gill(e)", follower, devotee of. One Makallum MacAndro was recorded in Murthlac, Scotland, in 1550, and a Thomas McAndrew was noted in "Records of Inverness", dated 1618. On September 5th 1873, John MacAndrew and Eliza Mary Douglas were married in Edinburgh, Midlothian. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Donald Makandro, which was dated 1502, in "Documents relating to the family of Rose of Kilravock", Scotland, during the reign of King James 1V of Scotland, 1488 - 1513. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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