Emmelia
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "industrious" or "hardworking".
Name Census estimates that about 553 living Americans carry the first name Emmelia. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Emmelia today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Emmelia births was 2011 (36 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Emmelia. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Emmelia with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
553
~ 1 in 619,809 Americans
Peak year
2011
36 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,299
Tracked since 1993
Census
Emmelia in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 390 people with the first name Emmelia, which placed it at #24,620 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#24,620
National first-name rank
People counted
390
390 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
79.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Emmelia
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Emmelia is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Emmelia described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Emmelia at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.7% · 311
- Hispanic or Latino9.2% · 36
- Two or more races6.4% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.3% · 9
- Black or African American1.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 4
Popularity
Emmelia: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Emmelia from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 289 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Emmelia remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Emmelia by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Emmelia during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Emmelias live
The SSA's state-level files cover 6 states and territories. Texas, Washington, California recorded the most babies named Emmelia, while Wisconsin, New York, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 6 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Emmelia
The name Emmelia is rooted in ancient Greek origins, with its earliest known usage dating back to the 5th century BC. It is derived from the Greek word "emeleia," which translates to "diligence" or "persistence." The name's meaning is closely linked to concepts of dedication, perseverance, and steadfastness.
In ancient Greece, Emmelia was a relatively uncommon name, often bestowed upon daughters born into affluent or influential families. It carried connotations of virtue and resilience, traits that were highly valued in Greek society at the time.
One of the earliest documented instances of the name Emmelia can be found in the writings of the renowned Greek historian Herodotus. In his work "The Histories," he mentions an Emmelia who was the wife of a prominent Athenian statesman during the 5th century BC.
Throughout the centuries, several notable individuals have borne the name Emmelia. One such figure was Emmelia Bassano (c. 1569 - 1645), an English Renaissance writer and member of the esteemed Bassano family of court musicians. Her literary works, including a collection of poems and a religious treatise, were highly regarded during her lifetime.
Another prominent Emmelia was Emmelia Rodat (1787 - 1862), a French artist and portraitist who gained recognition for her exceptional skill in capturing the likenesses of notable figures in 19th-century Paris. Her paintings are now housed in various prestigious museums across Europe.
In the realm of science, Emmelia Jeffreys (1923 - 2010) was a British geophysicist and seismologist who made significant contributions to the study of plate tectonics and the Earth's internal structure. Her pioneering research paved the way for a better understanding of the dynamics of the Earth's crust and mantle.
Another noteworthy individual was Emmelia Viotti (1928 - 2019), a renowned Dutch-British violinist and conductor. She was celebrated for her interpretations of classical works and her dedication to promoting the works of female composers throughout her illustrious career.
While the name Emmelia has its roots in ancient Greece, it has maintained a presence across various cultures and time periods, often bestowed upon individuals who embodied the virtues of diligence, perseverance, and a steadfast spirit.
People
Emmelia + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Emmelia as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Emmelia: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Emmelia?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 553 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Emmelia going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 619,809 US residents.
Is Emmelia a common name?
We classify Emmelia as "Very Rare". It ranks above 85.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 558 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Emmelia most popular?
The single biggest year for Emmelia was 2011, when 36 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Emmelia is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Emmelia in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 390 people with the name Emmelia, or 0.13 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #24,620 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Emmelia in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Emmelia?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Emmelia appears almost entirely female. Of the 392 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Emmelia?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Emmelia is White at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.2%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Emmelia most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Emmelia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.7% (311 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Emmelia in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Emmelia a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Emmelia in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Emmelia still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Emmelia in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Emmelia can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have Emmelia as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.