Emily

Feminine variation of Emil, Latin
"rival"

Emily Origin and Meaning

The name Emily is a girl's name of Latin origin meaning "rival".

Emily may have dropped somewhat in the current standings, but it was the most popular girls' name for over a decade because it appeals on many levels: Emily is feminine, classic, simple, pretty, and strong. Emily is Number 1 among Gen Z names. It also has those nice literary namesakes, like Emily Dickinson and Emily Brontë.

Parents who a decade ago might have chosen Emily have moved on to Emma and now are looking at such alternatives as Amelia and Emmeline. But those girls' names, like Emma, may soon feel overused too.

Emily was derived from the Roman name Aemilia, which may have evolved from the Latin word aemulus, meaning "hardworking" or "rival." Emilia has the same Latin root as Emily, but Amelia has separate origins — it was derived from the Germanic name Amalia, meaning work. Emma is also rooted in German and means universal.

Modern Emilys in the spotlight include a number of the hottest young actresses — Emily Blunt, Emily Mortimer, Emily Deschanel — and even Emma Stone was christened Emily. And Emily is still one of the most widely used girl names starting with E, on its way to overtaking A as the most fashionable first initial.

# 18 in the US

Emily Rank in US Top 1000

# 131 on Nameberry

Emily Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Emily Popularity

Famous People Named Emily

  • Emily Jane Bronte
    English novelist
  • Emily Elizabeth Dickinson
    American poet
  • Emily Post
    American author and etiquette guru
  • Emily Margaret Watson
    English actress
  • Emily Jordan Osment
    American actress
  • Emily Olivia Leah Blunt
    English actress
  • Emily Greene Balch
    American economist, sociologist, and pacifist
  • Emily Jean "Emma" Stone
    American actress
  • Emily
    May Stephenson, English actress
  • Emily Rebecca Kinney
    American actress and singer
  • Emily Carr
    Canadian painter
  • Emily St. John Mandel
    Canadian author
  • Emily Lau (Wai
    hing), Hong Kong politician
  • Emily West (born Emily Marie Nemmers)
    American singer
  • Emily Erin Deschanel
    American actress
  • Emily Kathleen Anne Mortimer
    English actress and screenwriter
  • Emily Irene VanCamp
    Canadian actress
  • Emily Haines
    Canadian,American singer,songwriter
  • Emily Robison (born Emily Burns Erwin)
    American singer,songwriter
  • Emily Saliers
    American singer,songwriter
  • Emily Anne Hughes
    American figure skater
  • Emily Smith
    Scottish folk singer
  • Emily Ann Sonnett
    American soccer player
  • Emily Nicole Boyd
    American soccer player
  • Emily Townsend Menges
    American soccer player
  • Emily Bett Rickards
    Canadian actress
  • Emily Louise Van Egmond
    Australian soccer player
  • Emily Jane Zurrer
    Canadian soccer player
  • Emily Sofia Alvarado Natividad
    Mexican American football player
  • Emily Ratajkowski
    American model and actress
  • Emily Palmer Marshall
    character on ZOOM
  • Emily Beth Stern (b. 1983)
    daughter of radio/TV personality Howard Stern
  • Emily Clarkson (b. 1995)
    daughter of TV presenter Jeremy Clarkson
  • Emily Cunliffe (b. 1998)
    daughter of TV personality Kym Marsh of "Loose Women"
  • Emily Grace Stanley (b. 2011)
    daughter of American musician Paul Stanley
  • Emily Dale Griffin (b. 2017)
    daughter of actress Sutton Foster and Ted Griffin

Emily in Pop Culture

  • Emily
    character in novel "The One Apart" by author Justine Avery
  • Lady Emily Ashton
    main character of the Lady Emily mysteries by Tasha Alexander
  • Emily
    main character in novelette "The Post,it Note Affair" by author Justine Avery
  • Emily Barham
    character in novel and 1964 film "The Americanization of Emily"
  • Emily Bartlett
    title character in Beverly Cleary's "Emily's Runaway Imagination"
  • Emily Bishop
    character on British soap "Coronation Street"
  • Emily Byrd Starr
    main character in L.M. Montgomery's Emily of New Moon series
  • Emily Duff
    character in animated series "Tiny Toon Adventures"
  • Emily Elizabeth
    character in the Clifford the Big Red Dog series
  • Emily Eyefinger
    children's book series by Duncan Ball and Craig Smith
  • Emily Fields
    character on TV's "Pretty Little Liars"
  • Emily Bennett
    character on TV's "The Vampire Diaries"
  • Emily Bennett
    character in the Molly: An American Girl book series and movie
  • Emily Fitch
    character on TV's "Skins"
  • Emily Foster
    main character in 1976 film "Emily"
  • Emily Francisco
    character on TV's "Alien Nation"
  • Emily Gilmore
    Lorelai Gilmore's mother on TV's "Gilmore Girls"
  • Emily Grierson
    main character in William Faulkner's "A Rose for Emily"
  • Emily Wheiler 'Neferet'
    main antagonist of the House of Night series (PC Cast)
  • Emily Hartwood
    character in video game series Alone in the Dark
  • Emily Kirk
    character on British soap "Emmerdale"
  • Emily Lightman
    character on TV's "Lie to Me"
  • Emily Locke
    main character on TV's "Powerless"
  • Emily Pollifax
    main character in mystery novels by Dorothy Gilman
  • Emily Prentiss
    character on TV's "Criminal Minds"
  • Emily Rappaport
    character in J.K. Rowling's "History of Magic in North America"
  • Emily Shelby
    character in Harriet Beecher Stowe's "Uncle Tom's Cabin'
  • Emily the Strange
    cartoon and merchandising character
  • Emily Thorne
    main character on TV's "Revenge," played by Emily VanCamp
  • Emily Weaver
    character in film "Crazy, Stupid, Love"
  • Emily Windsnap
    main character in a series of novels by Liz Kessler
  • Emily Wyatt
    character in the video game Deadly Premonition
  • Emily Young
    character in The Twilight Saga
  • Emily
    character in animated film "The Corpse Bride"
  • Emily
    character in the comic strip Peanuts
  • Emily
    character on TV's "Power Rangers Samurai"
  • Emily
    steam locomotive on animated series "Thomas & Friends"
  • "Emily
    " French animated series and its main character
  • Emily "Em"
    character in video game "Until Dawn"
  • Emily Drexel Lela Kaldwin
    character in "Dishonored" video game series
  • Emily Rose
    character in "The Exorcism of Emily Rose"
  • Emily "Em" Gale
    character in "The Wizard of Oz"
  • Emily
    the wife in Definitely, Maybe
  • Emily Bennett
    an American Girl Doll who is Molly Mcintire's best friend
  • Emily
    a character in the TV show "The Next Step"
  • Miss Emily Baldwin
    character in "The Waltons"
  • Emily Agreste
    character in "Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir"
  • Emily Sweeney
    character in TV series "The Big Bang Theory"
  • Emily Bosch
    character, Captain in the upcoming series "Star Trek: Picard"
  • Emily Birdy
    character in the World of Webkinz
  • Emily Waltham
    Ross’ ex,wife in FRIENDS
  • Emily Walker
    character on TV's "Walker"
  • "Emily"
    song by Joanna Newsom