| Emily | Grace | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Rival; eager | grace |
| Origin | Latin | latin |
| Gender | Girl | Girl |
| Pronunciation | EM-uh-lee | GRAYSS |
| Syllables | 3 | 1 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 1999 (26,542) | 2003 (12,781) |
| In 2025 | 5,451 | 5,127 |
| Trend | Declining | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Emily | Grace |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 37,622 | 31,533 |
| 2010s | 117,646 | 73,058 |
| 2000s | 223,768 | 110,720 |
| 1990s | 237,262 | 39,872 |
| 1980s | 131,764 | 11,796 |
| 1970s | 46,839 | 6,096 |
| 1960s | 12,332 | 11,213 |
| 1950s | 12,839 | 15,929 |
| 1940s | 13,409 | 19,370 |
| 1930s | 11,916 | 31,357 |
| 1920s | 18,754 | 60,060 |
| 1910s | 17,069 | 57,973 |
| 1900s | 6,423 | 26,927 |
| 1890s | 5,476 | 23,804 |
| 1880s | 3,368 | 15,227 |
Emily comes from the Roman family name Aemilius, linked to “rival” or “eager,” via the Latin Aemilia. It is carried by the poet Emily Dickinson and the novelist Emily Brontë.
Directly from the English word grace, from Latin 'gratia' meaning favour, thanks, or divine grace. A virtue name popularised by the Puritans; the root of nearly all 'grace'-meaning names of Latin origin.
Emily is more popular than Grace today: about 5,451 US babies were given the name Emily in 2025, compared with 5,127 named Grace.
Emily means Rival; eager (Latin origin), while Grace means grace (latin origin).
In US records, Emily first appears in 1880 and Grace in 1880, so Emily has the longer recorded history.