Embree
An English name, potentially derived from the surname Embree or Embury.
Name Census estimates that about 435 living Americans carry the first name Embree. It is a predominantly female name (97.8% of registrations). The average person named Embree today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Embree births was 2017 (39 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Embree. 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.
People living today
435
~ 1 in 787,941 Americans
Peak year
2017
39 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
1940 SSA rank
#3,604
Tracked since 1919
Census
Embree in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 355 people with the first name Embree, which placed it at #26,287 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
#26,287
National first-name rank
People counted
355
355 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
73.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Embree
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Embree is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.3%) and Two or More Races (7.0%). 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 Embree 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 Embree at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.0% · 259
- Black or African American11.3% · 40
- Two or more races7.0% · 25
- Hispanic or Latino5.4% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 5
Gender
Gender distribution for Embree
Embree leans heavily female at 97.8% of total registrations, but 10 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Embree as a male name
- Ranked #3,604 in 1940
- 5 male births in 1940
- Peak: 1919 (5 births)
Embree as a female name
- Ranked #5,990 in 2024
- 20 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2017 (39 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Embree leans strongly female. 311 people counted with this name were female (88.4%), compared with 41 male bearers (11.6%).
Popularity
Embree: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Embree from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 290 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Embree remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Embree 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 Embree during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Embrees live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. Texas, Alabama, Mississippi recorded the most babies named Embree, while North Carolina, Mississippi, Alabama recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 9 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Embree
The name Embree is believed to have originated from the Old English language, which was spoken in parts of Britain during the early medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English word "embrene," which means "ember" or "glowing coal." This suggests that the name may have been used to describe someone with a fiery temperament or perhaps someone who worked with fire, such as a blacksmith or a glassmaker.
The earliest recorded use of the name Embree dates back to the 13th century, where it appears in various historical documents and records from that time period. One of the earliest known individuals with the name was Embree of Warwick, a prominent landowner who lived in the county of Warwickshire, England, during the late 13th century.
In the 14th century, the name Embree was also recorded in religious texts and chronicles. One notable figure was Brother Embree, a Benedictine monk who lived in the Abbey of St. Edmund in Suffolk, England. He was known for his scholarly work and contributions to the abbey's library.
During the Renaissance period, the name Embree gained some popularity among the nobility and upper classes. One famous bearer of the name was Sir Embree Willoughby, a knight and courtier who served under King Henry VIII in the early 16th century. He was renowned for his military exploits and his involvement in the English Reformation.
Another historical figure with the name Embree was Captain Embree Hawthorn, a naval officer who served in the British Royal Navy during the 18th century. He is remembered for his participation in several naval battles, including the Battle of Quiberon Bay during the Seven Years' War.
In the 19th century, the name Embree was also associated with literary figures. One such individual was Embree Browning, an English poet and writer who was part of the Romantic movement. He was known for his lyrical poetry and his collaboration with his famous sister, Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
While the name Embree has become less common in modern times, it continues to hold historical significance and is a reflection of the rich cultural heritage of the English language and the people who have borne this name throughout the centuries.
People
Embree + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Embree 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
Embree: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Embree?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 435 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Embree 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 787,941 US residents.
Is Embree a common name?
We classify Embree as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 446 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Embree most popular?
The single biggest year for Embree was 2017, when 39 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Embree is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Embree in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 355 people with the name Embree, or 0.12 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #26,287 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 Embree 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 Embree?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Embree leans strongly female. 311 people counted with this name were female (88.4%), compared with 41 male bearers (11.6%). 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 Embree?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Embree is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Black (11.3%) and Two or More Races (7.0%). 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 Embree most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Embree in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.0% (259 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 Embree in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Embree a female name?
Yes, 97.8% of people registered as Embree 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 Embree still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Embree 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 Embree 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 Embree as a first name?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.