Fun Facts About the Name Empress
- More than 1 thousand babies named Empress: U.S. records list 1,747 babies given the name Empress from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Empress Mean?
Empress is the English title for a woman who rules an empire in her own right or who is the wife of an emperor. The word comes from Latin imperatrix, the feminine form of imperator, "commander," which is built on the verb imperare, "to command." Taken literally, the Latin term means "she who commands," so the modern sense of a female ruler or ruler's consort developed from a word for command and authority rather than from any personal-name root. English borrowed the word through Old French forms such as emperesse, which in turn came from the Latin imperatrix.
Empress Name History & Origins
The Latin imperator was originally a military title for a victorious commander, and its feminine counterpart imperatrix was used for women of imperial rank. In the Roman Empire, the honorific Augusta was the usual title for an empress, so imperatrix and Augusta belonged to overlapping but separate traditions of imperial naming. From Latin the word passed into medieval French as emperesse and emperice, and from French into Middle English as emperesse, later settling into the modern spelling empress. The same word family produced emperor and, by way of Old French, the title used for the wife or widow of a ruler.
Empress is chiefly a title rather than an inherited personal name. Its use as a given name draws directly on the English word, which is why it appears in English-speaking countries without a long line of older personal-name forms behind it, unlike names that descend from saints, biblical figures, or Germanic clan names. It is uncommon as a personal name and is sometimes chosen as a stage or pen name, as with the recording artist Empress Of (Lorely Rodriguez). Beyond such contemporary examples, documented use of Empress as an ordinary first name is sparse.
How Popular is the Name Empress?
Empress has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2019. Its best rank was #1,423 in 2019.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,304 | 79 | 0.0049% |
| 2024 | #2,029 | 96 | 0.0060% |
| 2023 | #1,774 | 115 | 0.0072% |
| 2022 | #1,745 | 119 | 0.0073% |
| 2021 | #1,699 | 122 | 0.0074% |
| 2020 | #1,573 | 134 | 0.0083% |
| 2019 | #1,423 | 157 | 0.0094% |
| 2018 | #1,878 | 107 | 0.0063% |
| 2017 | #1,879 | 108 | 0.0063% |
| 2016 | #2,039 | 97 | 0.0055% |
| 2015 | #2,660 | 67 | 0.0038% |
| 2014 | #3,121 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 2013 | #4,027 | 37 | 0.0021% |
| 2012 | #4,009 | 38 | 0.0022% |
| 2011 | #4,281 | 34 | 0.0019% |
| 2010 | #4,225 | 35 | 0.0020% |
| 2009 | #4,398 | 34 | 0.0019% |
| 2008 | #4,208 | 37 | 0.0020% |
| 2007 | #5,419 | 26 | 0.0014% |
| 2006 | #5,595 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2005 | #7,626 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2004 | #7,961 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2003 | #5,133 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2002 | #5,522 | 21 | 0.0012% |
| 2001 | #8,943 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2000 | #4,839 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 1999 | #5,290 | 20 | 0.0011% |
| 1998 | #7,236 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1997 | #6,980 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1996 | #8,350 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1995 | #14,121 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #6,089 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 1993 | #10,936 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1992 | #13,956 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1991 | #10,627 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1990 | #6,232 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1989 | #12,992 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #11,478 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Empress Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are fine when in harmony but changeable when in discord, because many of your best qualities are then reversed. You are entertaining but may be impulsive. Freedom is a necessity, and you find it difficult to settle down. Your versatility results in many changes, and often brings travel. Your fine intellect is capable of high honors if applied seriously. You are capable of inspired thinking applied to material things. You can be restless, changeable, and very sexy. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
You are seeking freedom, opportunities to enjoy life: to make love, to go places and to do things. You are very adventurous and willing to take risk to achieve your objectives. New ways and new experiences can't satisfy your restless nature. One adventure leads you to another. You are honest and fair, because you know that this is the only way to receive justice and honesty from other people. But your personal growth is vital for you, and it is difficult to be tied down by rules and obligations. Your restless spirit might best controlled by choosing the field of work that meet your demand for action and adventure.
✦ Empress's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Empress's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.