Girl's name
Esme
Say it EZ-may
French origin from Esmeralda, emerald
2 syllables
Where Esme is loved, common and rare
Common across the UK and one more place. Rare in Ireland, Canada, Sweden and four more places.
1 in 183 girls born in Scotland in 2025
Scotland 38thEngland and Wales 45thNorthern Ireland 65th
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 13 of the 40 official lists, among them Scotland (38th), England and Wales (45th) and Northern Ireland (65th).
Show all 13 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Scotland | 38th 2025 | 98 | 1 in 183 |
| England and Wales | 45th 2025 | 933 | 1 in 271 |
| Northern Ireland | 65th 2025 | 31 | 1 in 235 |
| New Zealand | 96th 2025 | 39 | rank only |
| Ireland | 135th 2025 | 66 | 1 in 320 |
| British Columbia province | 177th 2023 | 17 | about 1 in 703 |
| Quebec province | 346th 2025 | 15 | about 1 in 1,734 |
| Ontario province | 364th 2024 | 44 | about 1 in 1,238 |
| Sweden | 478th 2025 | 13 | about 1 in 3,090 |
| France as Esmé | 760th 2025 | 60 | 1 in 4,780 |
| Italy | 1025th 2024 | 10 | 1 in 17,917 |
| Austria | 1305th 2025 | 2 | 1 in 17,861 |
| Switzerland as Esmé | 1414th 2025 | 5 | 1 in 6,799 |
Rare, below the listed names: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, the Netherlands, Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock, Norway, Spain, Catalonia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Sources: National Records of Scotland (Scotland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); NISRA (Northern Ireland); Department of Internal Affairs (DIA), SmartStart (New Zealand); Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Retraite Québec (Banque de prénoms, Données Québec) (Quebec); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Skatteverket (Swedish Tax Agency) (Sweden); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland). How we count, and every source
About the name
An anglicised spelling of French Esmé, Esme drops the accent. It is linked to Esmeralda and carries that name's meaning, 'emerald'.
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Two syllables, EZ-may, with the stress at the start. Esmé keeps the French accent, Esmee is another spelling, and Esmeralda is the longer related name.
Esme ranks well in Scotland, England and Wales, and Northern Ireland, and is rare in Sweden, France and Italy. The Ontario and British Columbia records first show it in 1996 and place its peak in 2022. It is rising in five places while falling in only one, so it is a name with steady momentum in the English-speaking world.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- EZ-may, 2 syllables
- Meaning
- from Esmeralda,
emerald
- Origin
- French
- Other spellings
- Esmee
- Esmeralda
Counted together here: Esmé.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 5 of 9 regions, falling in none.
Show the yearsShow less
Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 35 | 42 | 38 | 43 | 42 | 46 | 40 | 47 | 51 | 45 |
| Scotland | 50 | 46 | 38 | 43 | 58 | 42 | 33 | 33 | 33 | 38 |
| Northern Ireland | 122 | 91 | 143 | 86 | 84 | 75 | 98 | 66 | 57 | 65 |
| Ireland | 110 | 99 | 179 | 152 | 125 | 149 | 128 | 110 | 166 | 135 |
| Ontario | 414 | 490 | 491 | 309 | 406 | 483 | 441 | 384 | 364 | |
| British Columbia | 513 | 369 | 313 | 331 | 358 | 352 | 159 | 177 | ||
| South Australia | 383 | 223 | ||||||||
| New Zealand | 96 | |||||||||
| Quebec | 956 | 651 | 559 | 593 | 526 | 491 | 432 | 457 | 376 | 346 |
| France | 3683 | 3622 | 1989 | 2530 | 2508 | 1957 | 1071 | 852 | 1013 | 760 |
| The Netherlands | 788 | 637 | 892 | 498 | 615 | 689 | 577 | |||
| Switzerland | 1279 | 1749 | 1296 | 913 | 1180 | 1539 | 1298 | 1130 | 800 | 1414 |
| Rostock | 283 | 199 | ||||||||
| Sweden | 789 | 658 | 792 | 478 | ||||||
| Italy | 1556 | 1215 | 1025 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 45 | 933 | 368.4 |
| 2024 | 51 | 864 | 334.9 |
| 2023 | 47 | 982 | 382.8 |
| 2022 | 40 | 1,101 | 417.8 |
| 2021 | 46 | 1,013 | 369.6 |
| 2020 | 42 | 1,055 | 393.1 |
| 2019 | 43 | 1,138 | 406.4 |
| 2018 | 38 | 1,234 | 428.1 |
| 2017 | 42 | 1,235 | 412.9 |
| 2016 | 35 | 1,416 | 461.0 |
| 2015 | 38 | 1,340 | 435.2 |
| 2014 | 50 | 1,151 | 375.3 |
| 2013 | 58 | 1,032 | 334.6 |
| 2012 | 65 | 934 | 290.0 |
| 2011 | 72 | 797 | 248.0 |
| 2010 | 74 | 823 | 256.4 |
| 2009 | 95 | 615 | 196.2 |
| 2008 | 100 | 555 | 175.8 |
| 2007 | 122 | 462 | 150.9 |
| 2006 | 125 | 428 | 143.0 |
| 2005 | 137 | 389 | 134.9 |
| 2004 | 160 | 335 | 117.2 |
| 2003 | 163 | 297 | 106.6 |
| 2002 | 202 | 215 | 80.4 |
| 2001 | 191 | 214 | 79.9 |
| 2000 | 171 | 254 | 93.0 |
| 1999 | 202 | 212 | 75.3 |
| 1998 | 194 | 222 | 76.8 |
| 1997 | 247 | 158 | 53.9 |
| 1996 | 278 | 135 | 45.6 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
Ontario and British Columbia since 1925
Half of the babies named Esme in Ontario and British Columbia since 1925 were born in or after 2018. First recorded in 1996. Her peak year there: 2022, at 104.7 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Esme per 100,000 girls born in Ontario and British Columbia, by five-year period. Her 2022 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (1917-2024), OGL-Ontario; BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (1924-2023), OGL-BC.
Sister names for Esme
1 in 911 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 1,627 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 131 in Scotland
1 in 185 in England and Wales
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 106 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 320 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 138 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 114 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Esme.
1 in 232 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Esme.
Similar forms, not dealt separately: Lilah.
1 in 280 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Esme.
Middle names for Esme
1 in 57 in Northern Ireland
Esme Grace
2-1 beats · initials EG
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Esme Olivia
2-4 beats · initials EO · Esme slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 4 syllables. Esme slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 99 in Scotland
Esme Sophia
2-3 beats · initials ES
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Esme Maria
2-3 beats · initials EM
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 214 in Northern Ireland
Esme Rose
2-1 beats · initials ER
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 1 syllable.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Esme Julia
2-3 beats · initials EJ
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 1,286 in England and Wales
Esme Miriam
2-3 beats · initials EM
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Esme Emily
2-3 beats · initials EE · Esme slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Esme: 2 syllables, then 3 syllables. Esme slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Same style as Esme
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 394 in England and Wales
96% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 1,118 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 320 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 106 in Scotland
95% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 185 in England and Wales
95% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 716 in Scotland
94% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 267 in Scotland
94% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
1 in 271 in Scotland
94% alike: moves with Esme across countries and decades.
Famous people named Esme
Esme Morgan, Esmé Bianco and Esmé Creed-Miles.
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-
English footballer born 2000
-
British actress born 1982
-
English actress born 2000
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Esme
5 questions, on how popular she is, what it means, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
Show all 5 questionsShow less
How popular is Esme?
Her best rank is No. 38 in Scotland in 2025, about 1 in 183 girls. She is in the published lists of 13 of our 40 regions.
What does Esme mean?
Esme takes her meaning from Esmeralda: "emerald", per Wiktionary.
How do you pronounce Esme?
EZ-may, with 2 syllables.
Is Esme getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 5 of 9 regions, falling in none.
Which sister names go with Esme?
The deck's top five sisters for Esme: Maddie, Belle, Hallie, Arabella and Maisie. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.