Emma

German
"universal"

Emma Origin and Meaning

The name Emma is a girl's name of German origin meaning "universal".

Emma has now been among the top girl names in the United States for several years, claiming the Number 1 crown in 2008 and again from 2015 to 2018 before dropping back to second place.

Emma is simple but has deep history, is streamlined and modern-feeling yet distinctly feminine. It's hard to find all those qualities combined in one name, which is exactly why so many parents (over 14,000 in the US last year) have chosen Emma, not just here but throughout the English-speaking world, Europe, and Latin America.

Emma has done handsprings up the charts internationally thanks to a legion of Emma heroines, from Bovary to Goldman to Jane Austen's protagonist, along with famous modern Emmas such as Emma Stone and Emma Watson. Parents who have turned from Emily to Emma seeking something more distinctive will have to keep looking.

It's worth noting that Emma, Emily, and the longtime British Number 1 Amelia, now in the US Top 10, all derive from different roots and have different meanings. But they continue to feel like very similar names.

Emma originated as a diminutive for Germanic names beginning with the ermen root. A very old royal name well used throughout the centuries—Queen Emma married King Ethelred the Unready in 1002—Emma is also historically associated with Lady Hamilton, the mistress of Lord Nelson and muse of painter George Romney.

Emma was given a big boost among popular baby names when it was given to Rachel and Ross's baby on Friends in 2002. It's also at the top of the list of the many fashionable girl names starting with E, which also includes Ella, Eleanor, and Eliza.

Parents who love Emma but think it's overexposed have been moving to such alternatives as Amelia, Emilia, Amelie, Emmeline, and Ella. But, of course, many of these names are poised to move up and take Emma's place near the top of the list.

Three of the hottest young female stars share the name: Emma Watson, Emma Roberts, and Emma (born Emily) Stone.

# 2 in the US

Emma Rank in US Top 1000

# 58 on Nameberry

Emma Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Emma Popularity

Famous People Named Emma

  • Emma of Normandy
    Queen consort of Ethelred the Unread(y) and Cnut the Great of England
  • Emma of France
    Queen consort of Rudolph of Burgundy, King of West Francia
  • (Adelheid) Emma Wilhelmina Theresia of Waldeck and Pyrmont
    Queen consort of William III of the Netherlands
  • Emma Kalanikaumakaʻamano Kaleleonālani Naʻea Rooke
    Queen consort of Kamehameha IV of Hawaii
  • Emma Tremblay
    American actress
  • Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson
    English actress
  • Emily Jean "Emma" Stone
    American actress
  • Emma Goldman
    Lithuanian,American socialist and labor organizer
  • Emma Thompson
    English actress
  • Emma Louise Slater
    English dancer
  • Emma Donoghue
    Irish novelist and playwright
  • (Carolyn) Emma Kirkby
    English operatic soprano
  • Emma
    Princess of Anhalt,Bernburg,Schaumburg,Hoym; Princess consort George II of Waldeck and Pyrmont; mother of Queen Emma of the Netherlands
  • Emma Lazarus
    American poet
  • Emma Louise Hewitt
    Australian singer,songwriter
  • Emma Moore
    English actress
  • Emma Caulfield
    American actress
  • Emma Kate Lahana
    New Zealand actress
  • Emma of Austrasia
    daughter of Theudebert II and possibly wife of Eadbald of Kent
  • Emma Hale Smith Bidamon
    first wife of American Mormon leader Joseph Smith
  • Emma Lockhart
    American actress
  • Emma Hart Willard
    American suffragist and educator
  • Emma De Caunes
    French actress
  • Emma Catherine Rigby
    English actress
  • Emma Ferguson
    English actress
  • Emma Kristina Degerstedt
    American actress
  • Emma Dumont (born Emma Noelle Roberts)
    American actress
  • Emma Jean Bell
    American actress
  • Emma Myles
    American actress
  • Emma Wedgwood Darwin
    wife of biologist Charles Darwin
  • Emma Lee Bunton aka Baby Spice
    English singer of the Spice Girls
  • Emma Howard
    American actress
  • Emma Louise Blackery
    British vlogger
  • Emma Härdelin
    Swedish musician of Garmarna and Triakel, daughter of violinist Thore Härdelin
  • Emma
    Princess of Schaumburg,Lippe; daughter of Prince George William
  • Emma Louise Willis
    English TV Presenter
  • Emma Reed Martelli
    American child model
  • Emma McKeon
    Australian swimmer
  • Emma Johansson
    Swedish cyclist
  • Emma Tonegato
    Australian rugby player
  • Emma Hellenkamp
    American dancer and model
  • Emma Mitchell
    Scottish football player
  • Emma Greer DiBiase
    American Internet personality
  • Emma Katherine Walton
    Hamilton, English actress; daughter of actress Julie Andrews
  • Emma Chawner
    Scottish singer; daughter of TV presenter Lorraine Kelly
  • Emma Ashley
    daughter of fashion designer Laura Ashley
  • Emma Frances Gough (b. 1953)
    daughter of actor Michael Gough
  • Emma Kristen Walsh (b. 1971)
    daughter of musician Joe Walsh
  • Emma Beth Bloomberg Frissora (b. 1979)
    daughter of politician Michael Bloomberg
  • Emma Ruck (b. 1987)
    daughter of actor Alan Ruck
  • Emma Raacke (b. 1991)
    daughter of actors Natja Brunckhorst and Dominic Raacke
  • Emma Rose Raimi (b. 1994)
    daughter of director Sam Raimi and Gillian Greene
  • Emma Taylor (b. 1997)
    daughter of musician Mick Taylor of the Rolling Stones
  • Emma Justine McBride (b. 1998)
    daughter of singer Martina McBride
  • Emma Claire Edwards (b. 1998)
    daughter of politicians John and Elizabeth Edwards
  • Emma Scarlet Faldo (b. 2003)
    daughter of golfer Nick Faldo
  • Emma Scott (b. 2001)
    daughter of actor Eric Scott
  • Emma Paula Vanderloo (b. 2004)
    daughter of Dutch actors Robine van der Meer and Mark Vanderloo
  • Emma Yoshiko Hedican (b. 2005)
    daughter of skater Kristi Yamaguchi and ice hockey player Bret Hedican
  • Emma Francisca Catharina van Vollenhoven (b. 2006)
    daughter of Prince Pieter,Christiaan of Orange,Nassau
  • Emma Tallulah Behn (b. 2007)
    daughter of Princess Martha Louise of Norway
  • Emma Rose Lima
    daughter of producer Brenda Chapman; inspiration for Merida of Pixar's "Brave"
  • Emma Cecile Rigonat (b. 2009)
    daughter of singer Elisa and Andrea Rigonat
  • Emma Metzelder (b. 2009)
    daughter of footballer Christoph Metzelder
  • Emma Elizabeth Biffle (b. 2011)
    daughter of NASCAR driver Greg Biffle
  • Emma Alonso Aranburu (b. 2013)
    daughter of footballer Xabi Alonso
  • Emma Marie Charlotte Sophie (b. 2015)
    Princess of Prussia; daughter of Prince Georg Friedrich
  • Emma Deru
    daughter of vlogger Julie Deru
  • Emma Rantalla
    Finnish rhythmic gymnast
  • Emma González
    Parkland, FL shooting survivor and activist

Emma in Pop Culture

  • Emma Woodhouse
    main character in "Emma" by Jane Austen
  • Emma Pillsbury
    character on TV's Glee
  • Emma Swan
    character on TV's Once Upon a Time
  • Emma Ross
    character on TV's "Jessie"
  • Emma Frost
    character in X,Men comics
  • Emma Cordelia Carstairs
    character in The Mortal Instruments and The Dark Artifices series
  • Emma Bovary
    main character in "Madame Bovary" by Gustave Flaubert
  • "Emma Zunz
    " short story by Jorge Luis Borges
  • Emma Geller
    Green, Ross & Rachel's daughter on TV's Friends
  • Emma Becker
    character in The Lying Game series
  • Emma Jane Hawthorne
    character in Mother,Daughter Book Club series
  • Emma Tolly
    a character in Jenny Nimmo's "The Children of the Red King" series
  • Emma Ryland
    character on TV's Dallas
  • Emma Alonso
    main character on TV's Every Witch Way
  • Emma Gilbert
    main character on H2O: Just Add Water
  • Emma Scorpio
    Drake, character on soap General Hospital
  • Emma Bloom
    character in 'Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children'
  • Emma Nelson
    character on TV's Degrassi: the Next Generation
  • Emma Peel
    character on TV's The Avengers
  • Aunt Emma
    character in movie The Wolf of Wall Street
  • Emma Horton
    character from the movie Terms of Endearment
  • Emma Ravenhearst
    character in video game "Mystery case files"
  • Emma Chota
    character on TV's "Red Band Society"
  • Emma Hatch
    character in "The Sims 3" computer game
  • Di. L. Emma Riddle
    character in "The Sims 3" computer game
  • Emma Tuttweiler
    character on TV's The Suite Life on Deck
  • Emma
    character in book/movie ''Blue is The Warmest Colour''
  • Emma Castelli
    character on TV's "Alex & Co."
  • Emma Wheeler
    character on TV's Baby Daddy
  • Emma Duval
    main character on MTV's "Scream"
  • Emma
    a LEGO Friends character
  • "Emma"
    song by Imagine Dragons
  • "For Emma
    Forever Ago," album by Bon Iver
  • Emma Geller
    character from Netflix's "Greenhouse Academy"
  • Emma Agreste/Dupain
    Cheng, imaginary daughter of Marinette Dupain,Cheng and Adrien Agrest in Miraculous: Tales of Ladybug & Cat Noir
  • Emma Vanderboom
    character in Rusty Lake: Roots
  • Emma
    main character in the manga/anime series "The Promised Neverland".
  • Emma
    aka Great Aunt Emma, also called Grinny , alien disguised as old elderly human woman in the 1973 Nicholas Fisk