Amelia
Meaning
traditionally "work," from the old root amal that also gives Amalia; long entangled with the unrelated Latin Emilia. An 18th-century royal favorite revived worldwide, a full classic that answers to Amy, Millie, and Mia
The story
Amelia carries the old Germanic root amal, traditionally read as work, the same root that gives Amalia; for centuries it has also been tangled up with the unrelated Latin Emilia, so the two names travel together without actually being kin. It came into English fashion with the royal court of the eighteenth century, when Hanoverian princesses made it a favorite, and Henry Fielding gave it a novel of its own in 1751. Its most famous modern bearer is Amelia Earhart, the aviator who crossed the Atlantic alone in 1932 and vanished over the Pacific five years later, leaving the name a permanent shine of daring. In US records it idled quietly for most of a century, then began climbing in the 1980s and simply kept going, cresting in the 2010s among the most popular girl names in the country.
Amelia's name family
One shared root links 5 names across 2 languages.
Shared root: from the Germanic element amal "work, vigor", through Amalia and Old French Ameline; a family long confused with, but distinct from, Emily
The constellation
More branches
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Amelia peaked in the 2010s.
Popularity in Brazil
40,022 people · the #665 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 5,076 · median age 65
Among people named Amelia living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1950s than in any other decade.
The census also counted 1,055 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Amelia
Most people given the name Amelia in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Amelia deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Amelia truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Amelia fits with your family’s names and surname.
Where Amelia travels
Global crossover · work (from Amalia); the UK's #1 girls' name for years and a fast-climbing top-20 favorite in the US
Polish · work, industriousness (popular alongside native Emilia)
Keep exploring
Names like Amelia · Nicknames for Amelia · Middle names for Amelia · Global crossover names · Polish baby names · Names of explorers and adventurers
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