Emo
A diminutive form of the name Emory, derived from an old German word meaning "labor, work".
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Emo. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 55.6% of registrations being male. The average person named Emo today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Emo births was 1924 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Emo. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Emo. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1924
7 babies that year
Average age
-
1925 SSA rank
#4,403
Tracked since 1917
Gender
Gender distribution for Emo
Emo is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 27 total registrations, 15 (55.6%) were male and 12 (44.4%) were female.
Emo as a male name
- Ranked #4,403 in 1925
- 5 male births in 1925
- Peak: 1917 (5 births)
Emo as a female name
- Ranked #5,080 in 1926
- 5 female births in 1926
- Peak: 1924 (7 births)
Popularity
Emo: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Emo from the 1910s through to the 1920s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 17 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
Emo 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 Emo during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Emo
The name Emo is derived from the Latin word "aemulus", which means "rival" or "one who imitates". It is believed to have originated in ancient Rome during the Roman Imperial period, which lasted from 27 BC to 476 AD.
In ancient Roman society, the name Emo was often given to individuals who were seen as rivals or competitors, particularly in the fields of politics, sports, or academics. It was a way to acknowledge their ambition and drive to excel.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Emo can be found in the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus, who mentioned an individual named Emo Philarcus, who lived during the 1st century AD. Philarcus was a renowned orator and philosopher known for his oratorical skills and his ability to sway audiences.
Another notable figure with the name Emo was Emo Quintus, a Roman general who served under the Emperor Trajan in the early 2nd century AD. Quintus was renowned for his military prowess and his victories in battles against the Dacians and Parthians.
In the 3rd century AD, there was a Christian martyr named Emo of Sardinia who was persecuted and executed for his religious beliefs during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian.
During the Middle Ages, the name Emo was relatively uncommon, but it did appear in some historical records. One such individual was Emo of Fritzlar, a German monk and chronicler who lived in the 11th century. He is known for his work "Vita Sancti Conradi", a biography of the life of Conrad of Constance, the first bishop of Constance.
In the 16th century, there was an Italian painter named Emo da Rovigo, who was active in the Venetian Republic. His works, which primarily depicted religious themes, can still be found in churches and galleries in Venice and the surrounding regions.
While the name Emo has been relatively rare throughout history, it has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including military leaders, religious figures, scholars, and artists. Despite its ancient origins, the name has managed to endure and continue to be used, albeit infrequently, to this day.
People
Emo + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Emo 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
Emo: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Emo?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Emo 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 - US residents.
Is Emo a common name?
We classify Emo as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 27 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Emo most popular?
The single biggest year for Emo was 1924, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Emo is about 0 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 Emo in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Emo a male name?
Yes, 55.6% of people registered as Emo in the SSA data are male. 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 Emo still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Emo 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 Emo 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 Emo?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Emo on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.