Girls' name · peaked in 1881
Emma name popularity since 1925
632,387 babies born in the US from 1925 to 2025 were named Emma. Half of them were born in 2008 or earlier, so the typical Emma is about 18 years old in 2026. Emma peaked in 1881 as the #3 name for girls, and it ranked #3 in 2025.
Key facts
- US babies since 1925
- 632,387
- Named Emma, 1925–2025
- Peak year
- 1881
- #3 for girls that year
- In 2025
- #3
- for girls in 2025 (12,754 babies)
- Girls / boys
- 99.8% girls
- 631,191 girls · 1,196 boys
- Most popular in
- Nevada
- 1.60× its national share
Peak year is the year Emma made up the largest share of US girls, in records going back to 1880. Typical age is based on births from 1925 on, not on who is living today.
Emma births per year, 1925–2025
The biggest year on this chart was 2003. Measured as a share of all babies, Emma peaked earlier, in 1881.
- Steepest fall: Between 1941 and 1946, Emma's share of baby girls fell by 37%, from 1 in 475 to 1 in 759.
- Fastest rise: Between 1983 and 1988, it became 3.1× more common, from 1 in 3,030 baby girls to 1 in 992.
Shaded on the chart. Both compare Emma's share of all US girls five years apart, counting only years with at least 100 babies named Emma.
Decade by decade
Babies named Emma in each decade, and its rank among girls' names in the middle year of the decade (1935, 1945 … 2025).
| Decade | Girls | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1925–29 | 21,341 | 110 | – |
| 1930s | 30,022 | 208 | #89 |
| 1940s | 22,788 | 113 | #123 |
| 1950s | 14,613 | 44 | #211 |
| 1960s | 6,993 | 18 | #359 |
| 1970s | 4,665 | 16 | #422 |
| 1980s | 10,381 | 62 | #263 |
| 1990s | 58,252 | 70 | #67 |
| 2000s | 181,414 | 297 | #2 |
| 2010s | 195,070 | 162 | #1 |
| 2020–25 | 85,652 | 96 | #3 |
Ranks count every name given to at least 5 girls that year, so they can go past 1,000.
Generation fingerprint
42.5% of babies named Emma from 1925 to 2025 were born in the Gen Z years (1997–2012). The full split by generation:
Where Emma is most popular
The index compares Emma's share of babies in each state with its share nationwide, 1925–2025 (1.50× = 50% more common). States with at least 300 babies named Emma.
| State | Index | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| Nevada | 1.60× | 3,633 |
| Alaska | 1.51× | 1,431 |
| Utah | 1.43× | 7,735 |
| New Hampshire | 1.42× | 2,851 |
| Arizona | 1.35× | 11,124 |
Other spellings
Spellings that sound like Emma and were given to at least 1,000 girls from 1925 to 2025, with the year each one was most popular.
| Spelling | Girls | Peak year |
|---|---|---|
| Emma (this page) | 631,191 | 1881 |
| Ema | 4,507 | 2025 |
Names with a similar story
Of the other 499 names on this site, these six had the share of babies closest in shape to Emma's from 1925 to 2025, however common each one got. Each line is scaled to its own high; the dashed line is Emma.
Names from the same era
Other common names that peaked within two years of Emma (1881).
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national and state baby-name data, which covers names given to at least 5 babies of one sex in a year. About the data