What does Emi mean?
Emi is often written with kanji for “beautiful” and “blessing” or “smile.”
What does Akari mean?
Akari is commonly written with kanji meaning “light” or “brightness.”
Emi vs Akari
Which is more popular?
Emi is more popular than Akari today: about 303 US babies were given the name Emi in 2025, compared with 104 named Akari.
| Emi | Akari | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Beautiful blessing | Light, brightness |
| Origin | Japanese | Japanese |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | EH-mee | ah-KAH-ree |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1916 | 1990 |
| Peak year | 2025 (303) | 2023 (111) |
| In 2025 | 303 | 104 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Near its peak |
Popularity over time, 1880–2025
Emi
Akari
Source: US Social Security Administration.
Births by decade
| Decade | Emi | Akari |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 1,314 | 513 |
| 2010s | 1,523 | 386 |
| 2000s | 706 | 176 |
| 1990s | 279 | 57 |
| 1980s | 257 | 0 |
| 1970s | 141 | 0 |
| 1960s | 48 | 0 |
| 1950s | 19 | 0 |
| 1940s | 10 | 0 |
| 1930s | 10 | 0 |
| 1920s | 37 | 0 |
| 1910s | 16 | 0 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Emi or Akari more popular?
Emi is more popular than Akari today: about 303 US babies were given the name Emi in 2025, compared with 104 named Akari.
What is the difference between Emi and Akari?
Emi means Beautiful blessing (Japanese origin), while Akari means Light, brightness (Japanese origin).
Which name is older, Emi or Akari?
In US records, Emi first appears in 1916 and Akari in 1990, so Emi has the longer recorded history.