Esmi
A feminine Arabic name meaning "highest" or "most exalted".
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the first name Esmi. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Esmi today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Esmi births was 2023 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Esmi. 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 Esmi with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
132
~ 1 in 2,596,624 Americans
Peak year
2023
21 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,087
Tracked since 2010
Popularity
Esmi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Esmi from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 73 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Esmi 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 Esmi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Esmis live
Origin
Meaning and history of Esmi
The given name Esmi has its origins in the ancient Sumerian language, one of the earliest known written languages, which emerged in Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq) around 3500 BCE. The name is believed to be derived from the Sumerian word "ešme," which means "life" or "breath."
In Sumerian mythology, Esmi was also the name of a minor goddess associated with fertility and childbirth. Her name is mentioned in some cuneiform tablets and inscriptions found in archaeological sites across Mesopotamia.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Esmi can be found in the Sumerian King List, an ancient text that chronicles the rulers of various Sumerian city-states. The list mentions an early ruler named Esmi, who is said to have reigned in the city of Kish around 2700 BCE.
Throughout history, the name Esmi has been found in various cultures and regions influenced by the Sumerian civilization, such as the Akkadian Empire and the Babylonian Kingdom.
Notable individuals with the name Esmi include:
1. Esmi of Kish (c. 2700 BCE), a legendary ruler of the ancient Sumerian city-state of Kish, as mentioned in the Sumerian King List.
2. Esmi-Humban (c. 2500 BCE), an Akkadian princess and the daughter of Sargon of Akkad, one of the earliest known empire-builders in ancient Mesopotamia.
3. Esmi-Anum (c. 2100 BCE), a Sumerian high priestess and scribe who served in the temple of the goddess Inanna in the city of Uruk.
4. Esmi-Adad (c. 1800 BCE), a Babylonian official and advisor to King Shamshu-iluna of the Old Babylonian period.
5. Esmi-Dagan (c. 1600 BCE), a Kassite king who ruled over the city-state of Babylon for a brief period, according to some ancient chronicles.
While the name Esmi has its roots in ancient Mesopotamian cultures, it has continued to be used, albeit less commonly, in various parts of the world, carrying the essence of its original meaning related to life and fertility.
People
Esmi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Esmi 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
Esmi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Esmi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 132 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Esmi 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 2,596,624 US residents.
Is Esmi a common name?
We classify Esmi as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 133 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Esmi most popular?
The single biggest year for Esmi was 2023, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Esmi is about 7 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Esmi in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Esmi a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Esmi 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 Esmi still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Esmi 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 Esmi 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Esmi?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.