An apparatus and a method for managing an address book in a portable wireless terminal, allowing users to easily input private information into the apparatus. The apparatus includes an RFID recognition section for receiving information transmitted from an RFID chip after transmission of an electric wave, storing and reading received information, and converting read data into data suitable for an address book; a display section for displaying data for the address book management; a user command input section for inputting a command for the address book management by a user; an address book storage section for storing private information; and a control section for controlling an operation of the RFID recognition section, so as to transmit the converted data to the address book storage section according to a user command, thereby storing the data.