Emma (English pronunciation Em-a) is a female name derived from the German word ermen meaning whole’ or complete’.

Emma can also be used as a boy’s name, but this usage is very rare.

In Buddhism the dharmapala and judge of the dead is called Yama, in Japanese the deity is referred to as Emma.

In Christianity the name is attributed to the following Saints:

Saint Hemma of Gurk, Austria (born circa 980)
Saint Emma of Lesum (died 1038) , some sources credit her as being one of the first people to have the name Emma.
Saint Edigna of Puch is sometimes referred to as Emma.
Hemma (born 808), queen of Louis the German is sometimes referred to as Saint Emma.

The name was extremely popular in the 1880s but then experienced a decline, there was a slight recoup in the 1980s and then in the 1990s the frequency of the name soared.

Factors that may have affected this surge in popularity include the nineties adaptations of Jane Austen’s classic novel Emma’, there was one starring Kate Beckinsale and one which starred Gwyneth Paltrow as well as the movie Clueless which was loosely based around the novel. Additional to these productions a revival of Austen’s works (such as Pride and Prejudice and Sense and Sensibility) in film and television production during the nineties added to the boost in the popularity of the author’s works in general and so possibly this carried over to the name Emma.

In 2006 Emma was the most popular name for new born baby girls in Belgium, Finland, Ireland, Norway and Sweden, in the United States the name ranked as the second most popular for this year.

In England and Wales the name was ranked 27th in popularity in 2006.

Namesakes:

Emma Bovary is the heroine of Gustave Flaubert’s novel Madame Bovary

Emma is the title of Howard Zinn’s play about the anarchist and feminist Emma Goldman.

Famous people called Emma include:

Emma Thompson (born April 15, 1959),an award winning English actress and screenwriter.

Emma Darwin (born 1808), the wife of Charles Darwin

Emma Charlotte Duerre Watson (born 15 April 1990), a British actress well known for her role as Hermione Granger in the Harry Potter films.

The variations of the name Emma include:

Em, Ema, Emelina, Erne-line, Emelyne, Emmaline, Emmalyn, Emmalynn, Em-malynne, and Emmi.

Variant spellings of the name Emma include:

Aemilia - Ancient Roman
Aileen - Scottish, English
Amelia - Amilia, Emelia, Emelie, Emely, Emilee: English
Eileen - Irish, English
Emelie - Swedish
Emmaline, Emmeline, Emmie, Emmy: - English