NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Emelie

A feminine name of French origin meaning "industrious" or "hardworking".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Emelie is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Emelie popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5891, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2013, with 37 births.

This profile covers 303 England and Wales registrations across 28 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 8% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 336 living people in the UK are called Emelie. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Emelie ranked #5891 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 3 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2013, when 37 girls were registered as Emelie.
  • Emelie ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #376 in 2019.
  • About 336 living people in the UK are estimated to have Emelie as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#5891

2024

Births in 2024

3

Latest year

Peak year

2013

37 births

Estimated living

336

2026

Meaning

What does Emelie mean?

The given name Emelie is derived from the Germanic root name Amal, which means "work" or "labor." This root name has its origins in ancient Germanic tribes and was a common name among them.

The name Emelie emerged as a variant spelling of the name Emily, which itself is a French form of the Latin name Aemilia. This Latin name was initially derived from the Roman family name Aemilius, which may have been related to the word "aemulus," meaning "rival."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Emelie can be found in the 12th-century poem "Emelie de Champagne" by the French poet Chrétien de Troyes. This work is believed to have popularized the name in medieval Europe.

In the 13th century, a notable bearer of the name was Emelie of Leiningen, a German noblewoman and the wife of Count Henry IV of Zweibrücken. She lived from around 1220 to 1284.

During the Renaissance period, Emelie von Nassau-Dillenburg (1506-1580) was a German noblewoman and the wife of Count Johann VI of Nassau-Dillenburg. She played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation by providing refuge to persecuted Protestants.

In the 17th century, Emelie de Breteuil (1610-1660) was a French noblewoman and the mistress of King Louis XIV of France. She was known for her influence at the French court and her involvement in various political intrigues.

Another notable figure with the name Emelie was Emelie Flygare-Carlén (1807-1892), a Swedish novelist and playwright. She was one of the most popular and influential authors in 19th-century Sweden, known for her realistic portrayals of contemporary life.

In the 20th century, Emelie Warner (1903-1986) was an American actress and dancer. She appeared in various Broadway productions and Hollywood films, including the 1933 movie "Roman Scandals."

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Emelie over time

The chart below shows babies named Emelie registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Emelie, the clearest high point is 2013. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2024, compared with 37 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Emelie
09192837199620102024

Decades

Emelie by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Emelie was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2020s #4144 28 5
2010s #1778 198 10
2000s #2914 58 9
1990s #2863 19 4

Geography

Where Emelie is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Emelie. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Emelie ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #376 in 2019.

Scotland
9
Northern Ireland
3

Across the UK

Emelie in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#376 in 2019

4 years of NRS records, 29 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#440 in 2016

2 years of NISRA records, 6 total registered

Related

Names similar to Emelie

FAQ

Emelie: questions and answers

How popular is the name Emelie in the UK right now?

In 2024, Emelie was ranked #5891 for girls in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.

When was Emelie most popular?

The peak year on record was 2013, with 37 babies registered as Emelie in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Emelie?

A feminine name of French origin meaning "industrious" or "hardworking".

How many people are called Emelie in the UK?

A total of 303 babies have been registered as Emelie across the 28 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 29 more in Scotland and 6 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Emelie most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Emelie ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #376 in 2019. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.