What was Andy Warhol’s birth name before he became famous as an artist?

Andy Warhol’s birth name was Andrew Warhola. He was born on August 6, 1928, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to parents Julia and Ondrej Warhola, immigrants from what is now eastern Slovakia.

Warhola later shortened his surname to Warhol as he built a career in New York. The change helped create the concise professional name under which he became one of the best-known figures in American Pop Art.

The surname is sometimes spelled or pronounced incorrectly because Warhol’s family background was Rusyn and Slovak, while his public career was conducted in the United States. His mother, Julia, also used the surname Warhola and supported his artistic ambitions.

Warhol’s early name is distinct from his later artistic identity, but both names refer to the same person: the illustrator, filmmaker, publisher, and Pop artist associated with Campbell’s Soup Cans, celebrity portraits, and The Factory.