FastNamesEmily
Latin name meaning "Derived from Latin Aemilia, the feminine form of the Roman patrician clan name Aemilius, traditionally related to aemulus ('rival', 'emulating', or 'industrious').". Ranked 34th for girls in 2025.
Meaning and origin of Emily
Derived from Latin Aemilia, the feminine form of the Roman patrician clan name Aemilius, traditionally related to aemulus ('rival', 'emulating', or 'industrious').
Linguistically, Emily is classified under Latin naming traditions. It is typically pronounced "EM-i-lee".
Popularity and ranking
In official US Social Security birth records from 1880 through 2025, Emily has been given to a total of 896,487 girls. It has also been given to 1,809 boys.
Peak year: Emily reached its highest relative share among girls in 1999, when 26,542 babies received the name (14,963 per million births).
All-time best rank: 1st place, first achieved in 1996.
Recent standing (2025): Ranked 34th with 5,451 births. Ten years earlier in 2015, it ranked 8th (down 26 spots).
Busiest decade: More girls were named Emily in the 1990s than in any other decade (237,262 births).
| Decade | Recorded births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 3,368 |
| 1890s | 5,476 |
| 1900s | 6,423 |
| 1910s | 17,069 |
| 1920s | 18,754 |
| 1930s | 11,916 |
| 1940s | 13,409 |
| 1950s | 12,839 |
| 1960s | 12,332 |
| 1970s | 46,839 |
| 1980s | 131,764 |
| 1990s | 237,262 |
| 2000s | 223,768 |
| 2010s | 117,646 |
| 2020s | 37,622 |
Source: Social Security Administration, national baby name data, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
Where Emily is most common in the US
Accounting for when Emily was in fashion nationally, it has been most heavily concentrated in the following states (measured against the expected rate from each state's births):
- Vermont: 1.8 times the national rate (2,186 births since 1910).
- New Hampshire: 1.6 times the national rate (4,548 births since 1910).
- Maine: 1.5 times the national rate (4,584 births since 1910).
- Rhode Island: 1.4 times the national rate (3,621 births since 1910).
- Delaware: 1.4 times the national rate (2,407 births since 1910).
Source: Social Security Administration, baby names by state, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a state in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
How many people have the name Emily?
About 815,000 living American girls and women share the name Emily. Additionally, an estimated 1,600 living American boys and men share the name.
The median age of an American named Emily is 28 years old.
Estimated from Social Security Administration records (1880–2025) and official SSA cohort mortality tables.
History of the name Emily
Emily descends from the ancient Roman gentile name Aemilius, borne by one of the greatest patrician clans of the Roman Republic, the gens Aemilia. The Roman cognomen is conventionally linked to Latin aemulus, meaning 'rival', 'striving', or 'eager to emulate'. The feminine form Aemilia was used by multiple celebrated noblewomen in classical antiquity.
The name entered English literature through Geoffrey Chaucer's The Knight's Tale (c. 1380), in which the fair Emelye is the object of chivalric devotion between Palamon and Arcite. However, Emily was rare in everyday English use until the German House of Hanover succeeded to the British throne in 1714; Princess Amelia Sophia Eleanor (daughter of George II) was commonly called Emily in court society. The nineteenth century brought profound literary resonance through author Emily Brontë and poet Emily Dickinson.
In United States demographic history, Emily ranked within the national top thirty during the 1880s before gradually waning to outside the top 250 by 1960. It underwent an extraordinary modern revival starting in the 1970s. Emily climbed into the top ten in 1991, attained the national number one ranking in 1996, and retained the number one position for twelve consecutive years from 1996 through 2007, making it the defining American girls' name of the turn of the millennium.
Notable people named Emily
- Emily Dickinson (1830–1886), Poet
- Emily Brontë (1818–1848), Novelist and poet
- Emily Post (1872–1960), Author and etiquette authority
- Emily Blunt (1983–), Actress
- Emily Watson (1967–), Actress
Variants and related names
Spelling variants
Diminutives and nicknames
Related names
Sources and references
- Patrick Hanks, Kate Hardcastle, Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of First Names (2006), p. 89.
- E. G. Withycombe. The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names (1977), p. 104.
- Douglas Harper. Online Etymology Dictionary. Reference link.