Emily Name Meaning

​Wendy Wisner
·5 min read
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Emily is frequently used as a girl's name. Learn more about the meaning, origin, and popularity of the name Emily.

Fact checked by Sarah Scott

Are you looking for a classic, traditionally feminine name that has maintained popularity over the decades? Emily may be the name you are looking for.

The name Emily is derived from the Roman family name Aemilius. The Aemilius family was prominent and powerful in ancient Rome. The name may come from the Latin word aemulus, meaning “industrious.”

Read on to learn about the meaning of the name Emily, its popularity, and variations.



  • Origin: The Latin name Aemilia became Emilia in Italian and Emily in English.

  • Gender: Emily is traditionally a feminine name. Emil and Emilio are masculine alternatives.

  • Pronunciation: EM-i-lee





Editor's Note

Although many baby names are separated by gender, Parents believes that gender does not need to play a role in your name selection process. Instead, it’s important to select a name that you feel suits your new baby the best.



How Popular Is the Name Emily?

Emily has been a top name since 1900 when it ranked 105. In the early part of the century, it hovered around 100, dropping to below 200 in 1950. The lowest it ever dropped was 273 in 1962. Since then, it has steadily climbed, reaching its peak in popularity in the 1990s.

Emily was the number one baby name for girls in America from 1996 to 2007. It was consistently in the top 10 from 1991 to 2016. Since then, it has remained one of the top 25 names. In 2022, Emily was ranked 17 in girl names in the US.

Related: These Baby Name Trends Will Be Popular in 2024

Name Variations

The Emilia variation is used in many languages, including Czech, Danish, German, Italian, Polish, Romanian, Russian, and Spanish. Here are some more forms seen around the world:

  • Eemeli (Finnish)

  • Emelie (Swedish)

  • Emili (Hungarian)

  • Emília (Portuguese)

  • Emilía (Icelandic)

  • Émilie (French)

  • Emīlija (Latvian)

  • Emilis (Lithuanian)

  • Emiliya (Bulgarian)

  • Emlyn (Welsh)

Masculine variations include:

Common Nicknames for Emily

Nicknames for Emily include:

  • Em

  • Emmy

  • Mil

  • Mille

  • Millie

Related: 200+ Baby Nicknames That Are as Cute as Your New Baby

Similar Names

As Emily shares its first syllable with the name Emma, both are sometimes shortened as Em or Emmy. Emily and Emilia also sound similar to Amelia (and its French variant Amélie), though these are both derived from the Germanic name Amalia.

More girl names starting with "E" include:

  • Eleanor

  • Eliana

  • Elizabeth

  • Ella

  • Eloise

  • Erica

  • Esme

  • Estelle

  • Esther

  • Eva

  • Evelyn

More popular girl names from the 1990s include:

  • Ashley

  • Brianna

  • Hannah

  • Jessica

  • Kayla

  • Lauren

  • Megan

  • Samantha

  • Stephanie

  • Taylor

  • Victoria

Suggested Sibling Names

If you already have an Emily or are thinking ahead to sibling names to pair with Emily, these names may be good ones to add to your list:

  • Abigail

  • Alyssa

  • Chloe

  • Daniel

  • Isabella

  • Joshua

  • Matthew

  • Nicholas

  • Olivia

  • Ryan

  • Sophia

  • Zachary

Related: How To Choose a First, Middle, and Last Name for Your Baby

Famous People Named Emily

The name Emily has been commonplace for hundreds of years. Here are some notable figures your baby would share a name with:

  • Emily Barton, an American novelist and author of Brookland and The Book of Esther

  • Emily Blackwell, an American academic, was the first women to earn a medical degree in the United States

  • Emily Blunt, an English actor known for her roles in the films The Devil Wears Prada and Mary Poppins Returns

  • Emily Brontë, an English novelist and author of Wuthering Heights

  • Emily Browning, an Australian actor known for her roles in the film Sleeping Beauty and the TV series American Gods

  • Emily Carr, a Canadian artist who painted in a Modernist and Post-Impressionist style

  • Emily Davies, an English feminist and suffragist

  • Emily Deschanel, an American actor known for her starring role in the TV series Bones

  • Emily Dickinson, an American poet regarded as one of the major figures in American poetry

  • Emily Haines, a Canadian singer-songwriter and lead singer for the rock band Metric

  • Emily Hobhouse, an English activist, feminist, and pacifist

  • Emily Hughes, an American figure skater who competed in the 2006 Winter Olympics

  • Emily Lau, a Hong Kong politician and human rights activist

  • Emily Mortimer, an English actor known for her roles in the films Lovely and Amazing and Lars and the Real Girl

  • Emily Murphy, a Canadian author and women's rights activist

  • Emily Osment, an American actor known for her roles in the Spy Kids film series and the TV show Hannah Montana

  • Emily Post, an American author known for her works on etiquette

  • Emily Procter, an American actor known for her roles in the TV series The West Wing and CSI: Miami

  • Emily VanCamp, a Canadian actor known for her role in the Captain America films and related works

  • Emily Watson, an English actor known for her roles in the films Breaking the Waves and Hilary and Jackie

  • Emily Webley-Smith, an English tennis player

Famous people named Emmy

If you think your Emily may use the nickname Emmy, they may share their name with the following:

  • Emmy Andriesse, a Dutch photographer

  • Emmy Krüger, a German operatic soprano

  • Emmy Noether, a Bavarian Jewish mathematician

  • Emmy Okello, a Ugandan consultant physician

  • Emmy Verhey, a Dutch violinist

  • Emmy Wehlen, a German actor

  • Emmy Werner, an American developmental psychologist

Famous people named Millie

As another variation of Emily, Millies share their name with the following famous Millies:

  • Millie Bailey, an American World War II veteran, civil servant, and volunteer

  • Millie Bobby Brown, an English actor known for the TV series Stranger Things

  • Millie Bright, an English footballer in the FA Women's Super League

  • Millie Corretjer, a Puerto Rican singer and actor

  • Millie Criswell, an American writer of romance novels

  • Millie Davis, a Canadian actor

  • Millie Hamner, an American politician and member of the Colorado State House of Representatives beginning in 2010

  • Millie Hughes-Fulford, an American medical investigator, molecular biologist, and former NASA astronaut

  • Millie Innes, a Scottish actor



More Baby Names

Still searching for the perfect baby name? Check out these related baby name lists for even more options:



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Read the original article on Parents.