Emory

Meaning and origin of Emory

Emory is an English and French name that is usually said to mean “from Emery, a Norman name”.

Emory comes from an English surname that grew out of Emery, a given name the Normans brought to England. Emery descends from Germanic roots, usually traced to Amalric, where amal is often explained as work or vigor and ric means ruler, though the early forms are tangled and the meaning is not certain. Emory University in Georgia takes its name from John Emory, a Methodist bishop. For much of its history Emory was a boy's name, but it has become a popular unisex choice. It sounds soft yet grounded, and Em or Emmy work as nicknames.

Other spellings with the same sound: Emery, Emmery.

Gender, sound and spelling

Emory is used for both boys and girls: over the last 20 years about 67% of US babies named Emory were girls and 33% were boys.

Emory is usually pronounced EH-mur-ee, with three syllables. It has five letters, starts with E and ends in “-ry”. Names that sound the same but are spelled differently include Emery and Emmery.