Amelia

At a Glance

Meaning

Vigorous, active (traditionally also glossed as 'work')

Origin

Germanic

Gender

Girl

Pronunciation

ah-MEEL-yahListen

Amelia is a classic girl's name, pronounced ah-MEEL-yah. You may have heard it means 'work' or 'industrious,' a claim that borrows from Emily/Aemilia — but linguists actually trace Amelia to a separate Germanic root, amal, giving it the sense of 'vigorous, active' instead. So the Germanic-rooted meaning is real, just not the one most often repeated.

Meaning & Origin of Amelia

Meaning: Vigorous, active (traditionally also glossed as 'work').

Origin: Germanic.

A common claim: Amelia is widely said to mean 'work' or 'industrious.' Actually: Amelia is often assumed to share the Latin root of Emily/Aemilia, but linguists trace it instead to the separate Germanic element amal ('vigorous/active').

Source: Wiktionary, Wikipedia.

How to Pronounce Amelia

Popularity of Amelia

Amelia ranked #3 in 2024, with 12,740 girls given the name that year — its highest rank on record in Social Security data going back to 1880.

Names Like Amelia

These names share Amelia’s style, era or origin.

• Adaline
• Adelina
• Adriana
• Adrianna
• Antonella
• Antonia

FAQ

What does the name Amelia mean?

Vigorous, active (traditionally also glossed as ‘work’). (Source: Wiktionary)

How do you pronounce Amelia?

Amelia is pronounced ah-MEEL-yah (IPA: /əˈmiːljə/).

Is Amelia a popular name right now?

Amelia is at its highest recorded popularity right now, ranked #3 in 2024. (U.S. Social Security Administration data, 1880–2024.)

Make Amelia Name Art

Free printable nursery art for Amelia, pre-loaded below — pick a layout, palette, and font, then download a print-ready PNG.