Head to head · Boys' names
Emiliano vs Jose
#94 vs #95 in 2025
Emiliano is a whisker ahead (#94 vs #95 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Emiliano is climbing the charts fast, Jose is holding its place on the charts.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
The tape is even: Emiliano and Jose each lead 3 measures of 6.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Emiliano #836, Jose #150 — Jose higher
- 1890s: Emiliano —, Jose #161 — Jose higher
- 1900s: Emiliano —, Jose #133 — Jose higher
- 1910s: Emiliano #3216, Jose #156 — Jose higher
- 1920s: Emiliano #2877, Jose #123 — Jose higher
- 1930s: Emiliano #2824, Jose #135 — Jose higher
- 1940s: Emiliano #2744, Jose #138 — Jose higher
- 1950s: Emiliano #2438, Jose #111 — Jose higher
- 1960s: Emiliano #1973, Jose #86 — Jose higher
- 1970s: Emiliano #1264, Jose #48 — Jose higher
- 1980s: Emiliano #1503, Jose #48 — Jose higher
- 1990s: Emiliano #1264, Jose #35 — Jose higher
- 2000s: Emiliano #400, Jose #33 — Jose higher
- 2010s: Emiliano #241, Jose #76 — Jose higher
- 2020s: Emiliano #140, Jose #92 — Jose higher
Jose stood higher in every recorded decade — 15 of 15.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Emiliano | Jose |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #836 | #150 |
| 1890s | — | #161 |
| 1900s | — | #133 |
| 1910s | #3216 | #156 |
| 1920s | #2877 | #123 |
| 1930s | #2824 | #135 |
| 1940s | #2744 | #138 |
| 1950s | #2438 | #111 |
| 1960s | #1973 | #86 |
| 1970s | #1264 | #48 |
| 1980s | #1503 | #48 |
| 1990s | #1264 | #35 |
| 2000s | #400 | #33 |
| 2010s | #241 | #76 |
| 2020s | #140 | #92 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Emiliano
From the Roman family name Aemilius, usually read as 'rival' or 'striving to equal'
The common reading links Aemilius to Latin aemulus, 'rival, emulating'. But Aemilius is first of all a clan name of the early Roman patriciate, and names of that layer often predate Latin explanations — several scholars treat its ultimate origin as uncertain, possibly Etruscan. Aemilianus, the source of Emiliano, simply means 'of the Aemilius family'.
Aemilius → Aemilianus → Emiliano
How it traveled
The name begins as Roman shorthand for belonging: Aemilianus marked a man as of the gens Aemilia, one of Rome's oldest patrician houses. Latin passed it to the Romance languages largely intact, so Italian, Spanish and Portuguese all say Emiliano while French shortened its own line to Émilien and English kept only the trimmer Emil and the feminine Emilia.
Jose
he will add
From the Hebrew Yosef, through Greek Ioseph and Latin Iosephus into Spanish. The reading has not been seriously disputed.
Yosef → Ioseph → Iosephus → Josep → Jose
How it traveled
Latin Iosephus gave Old Spanish Josep, and Spanish then dropped the final consonant and settled on Jose. The letter j did the interesting part.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Emiliano
eh-mee-LYAH-noh
Four syllables in Spanish and Italian, with the -lia- gliding together. English speakers often say eh-mil-ee-AH-noh in five, which is widely accepted; either way the stress falls on the 'ah'.
- Emi — The everyday short form in Spanish-speaking households; also used for Emilia and Emily, so it is shared territory.
- Milo — Informal, drawn from the middle of the name; stands alone as a given name in English and German.
- Nano — A familiar Spanish clipping for names ending in -ano; used within families and among friends rather than in writing.
- Emil — A full given name in its own right across northern and central Europe, sometimes used as a formal shortening.
- Also Mili.
Jose
ho-SEH
Two syllables with the weight at the back and a throaty h at the front. Portuguese says it closer to zhoo-ZEH. American English generally settles on hoh-ZAY, which no Spanish speaker would use but which every Jose in the country answers to.
- Pepe — The standard Spanish short form, used by family and friends and never on documents.
- Chepe — Used in Mexico and parts of Central America where Pepe is less common.
- Joe — The English short form, used by men who work in English and are Jose at home.
- Che — An older familiar form, still heard in some regions.
Who has carried each name
Emiliano
Emiliano Zapata (b. 1879) — Hero of the Mexican Revolution
Emiliano Martínez (b. 1992) — Argentina's World Cup-winning goalkeeper
Jose
No documented entry for Jose yet.
Source: Wikidata — the one source on this page that is not an official agency.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Emiliano if you want…
- a name on the way upup 81 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itEmiliano runs 5 syllables, Jose 2
- a newer arrivalEmiliano entered the US charts in 1885
- a name that feels very nowEmiliano is climbing the charts fast
Choose Jose if you want…
- a name holding steadyJose is holding its place on the charts
- a name with fewer syllablesJose is 2 syllables to Emiliano's 5
- a long American recordJose was already in use when US records began in 1880
- a name that ages quietlyan estimated 12% chance of feeling dated by 2040, against 57% for Emiliano
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Emiliano
Strengths
- Spelled the same in Spanish, Italian and Portuguese, so it crosses borders and family lines without adjustment.
- The Emil-/Emili- opening is already familiar to English speakers through Emily and Emilia, which helps with reading it on a page.
- Several genuine short forms in real use — Emi, Milo, Nano — rather than one forced abbreviation.
To consider
- It is a long name in English mouths, and some people will add a syllable or shift the stress. Expect to say it twice at the doctor's office.
- Emiliano, Emilio and Emiliana sit close together, and misspellings like Emeliano or Emeliano are common on forms.
- In Mexican and Mexican-American settings the name is strongly tied to Emiliano Zapata — a proud association for many families, but a specific one worth knowing about.
Jose
Strengths
- It is understood on sight across the Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking world and needs no translation in either.
- It carries a settled Spanish short form, Pepe, and an English one, Joe, so the same person can be addressed naturally in both languages.
- Four letters, two syllables, no silent letters in any language that uses it.
To consider
- Written without its accent, as American forms usually leave it, the stress drifts to the front and readers who do not know the name mispronounce it.
- It is recorded for a small number of girls, usually inside a compound such as Maria Jose, so the spelling alone does not settle who is meant.
- In many Spanish-speaking families the name is expected as a compound, Jose Luis or Jose Maria, and standing alone it can read as incomplete.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
How each is likely to age
Emiliano
57%chance Emiliano feels dated by 2040
Emiliano is climbing fast right now. Steep climbs tend to come with steep descents — the quicker a name arrives, the more firmly it belongs to its moment.
Jose
12%chance Jose feels dated by 2040
Jose has held the top-100 across 7 different decades — it has never depended on fashion, and names like that read the same at any age.
A reading of where each name sits on the long naming cycle — computed, not measured, and explained on the data page.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Emiliano and Jose in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Emiliano and Jose?
Put both to the vote.
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More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Emiliano and Jose — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Emiliano or Jose — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Emiliano or Jose?
- Emiliano, in 2025: Emiliano ranked #94 with 3,701 babies; Jose ranked #95 with 3,678 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Emiliano or Jose?
- Emiliano. Over the last five years Emiliano moved up 81 places; Jose moved down 1 place.
- Which is the older name, Emiliano or Jose?
- Emiliano entered the US charts in 1885; Jose was already in use when US records began in 1880. On the American record, Jose is the older name.
- How many people are named Emiliano and Jose?
- About 42,000 people named Emiliano are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 518,000 people named Jose are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Emilianos or Joses in the classroom?
- Emiliano will almost certainly be the only one in school. Jose will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
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