Esmeralda

What Esmeralda means

Means “emerald”

From Spanish esmeralda (“emerald”), as first used in the novel Notre-Dame de Paris (1831) by Victor Hugo.

Source: Wiktionary, “Esmeralda” (revision 92643682), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Esmeralda?

US: Steady: #370 in 2015, #373 now. England & Wales: Rising: up from #1711 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 1998, when 2,477 girls got the name (#133 that year). First in the US records in 1911.

How common

• About 1 in 1,953 baby girls in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 6,332 baby girls in England and Wales in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in NV (2.17 per 1,000 girls), AZ (1.31 per 1,000 girls), NE (1.27 per 1,000 girls) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed girls born in each state.

US vs UK

Esmeralda is #373 in the US and #872 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (girls). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 99.9+% of US babies named Esmeralda were girls.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Esmerelda26 US · 7 E&W
• Ezmeralda19 US
• Ezmerelda6 US

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

If you like Esmeralda

Girls

• Luz#838Spanish, meaning “light”^*
• Anahi#482Spanish, meaning “cockspur coral tree (Erythrina crista-galli)”^*
• Angel#546Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 2002, with 3,100 babies; 551 in 2025
• Isabela#664Editor’s note First shows up in US records in 1982, with 6 babies
• Gabriella#105Editor’s note Down from #54 in 2015 to #105 in 2025 in the US
• Dulce#770Spanish, meaning “sweet”^*

For a brother

• Pablo#429Same root as Paul, meaning “small”^*
• Andres#200Spanish form of Andrew, meaning “manly”^*
• Dante#308Editor’s note Up from #322 in 2015 to #308 in 2025 in the US
• Angel#67Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #67 vs #1,307 in 2025
• Alejandro#195“defender of man”^*
• Diego#158Editor’s note More popular in the US than England & Wales: #158 vs #444 in 2025

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under Spanish & Italian, whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Esmeralda’s. Rank is US 2025.