Head to head · Girls' names
Ramona vs Remy
#733 vs #718 in 2025
Remy is a whisker ahead (#718 vs #733 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Remy is stepping back from its peak, Ramona is holding its place on the charts. On momentum, Ramona has the edge.
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
On the charts, Ramona leads 4 measures of 6; Remy leads 2.
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: Ramona #810, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1890s: Ramona #644, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1900s: Ramona #504, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1910s: Ramona #383, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1920s: Ramona #282, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1930s: Ramona #184, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1940s: Ramona #250, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1950s: Ramona #210, Remy — — Ramona higher
- 1960s: Ramona #241, Remy #6107 — Ramona higher
- 1970s: Ramona #396, Remy #4774 — Ramona higher
- 1980s: Ramona #767, Remy #3272 — Ramona higher
- 1990s: Ramona #1520, Remy #2238 — Ramona higher
- 2000s: Ramona #2107, Remy #2093 — Remy higher
- 2010s: Ramona #1107, Remy #952 — Remy higher
- 2020s: Ramona #779, Remy #615 — Remy higher
Ramona stood higher in 12 of 15 decades; Remy has held the lead since the 2000s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Ramona | Remy |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #810 | — |
| 1890s | #644 | — |
| 1900s | #504 | — |
| 1910s | #383 | — |
| 1920s | #282 | — |
| 1930s | #184 | — |
| 1940s | #250 | — |
| 1950s | #210 | — |
| 1960s | #241 | #6107 |
| 1970s | #396 | #4774 |
| 1980s | #767 | #3272 |
| 1990s | #1520 | #2238 |
| 2000s | #2107 | #2093 |
| 2010s | #1107 | #952 |
| 2020s | #779 | #615 |
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
Ramona
protecting counsel, from Germanic elements meaning advice and protection
The parts are ragin, 'counsel, advice', and mund, 'protection' — the same pair behind Raymond.
Raginmund → Raimund → Ramón → Ramona
How it traveled
The root is Germanic: Raginmund, built from words for counsel and protection, carried into Spain and southern France by Visigothic and Frankish speakers. In Spanish it wore down to Ramón, and Ramona was formed from it as the feminine — a pattern Spanish uses freely.
Remy
oarsman, rower
From Latin Remigius, built on remex, remigis — the man at the oar. The saint's fame in Gaul, not the word itself, is what carried the name forward.
Remigius → Rémi → Rémy → Remy
How it traveled
The Latin Remigius belonged most famously to the bishop of Reims who died around 533 and who baptized the Frankish king Clovis, an event that anchored the name in northern France for good. Medieval French wore it down to Rémi and Rémy, and the accent-free Remy is simply what the name looks like once English gets hold of it.
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
Ramona
ruh-MOH-nuh
Stress on the middle syllable. In Spanish it is rah-MOH-nah, with a clearer first vowel and a tapped r — both versions are correct depending on which language the family is speaking.
- Mona — The oldest and most common short form, and a standalone given name in its own right in several languages.
- Romy — A modern clipping, also used independently as a given name.
- Ro — Very informal, mostly within families.
- Rae — Informal, drawn from the first syllable; also a given name on its own.
- Also Mo.
Remy
REM-ee
Standard in American English, stress on the first syllable. The French Rémy is ray-MEE, with the stress at the back — worth deciding which one you want before the name is handed to a room full of relatives.
- Rem — The obvious clipped form; used informally and rarely written on anything official.
- Remmy — A doubled-consonant spelling used affectionately, mostly by family.
- Rey — Occasional, and stands on its own as a given name elsewhere.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Ramona if you want…
- a name fewer children share#733 in 2025 — ramona will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name on the way upup 70 places on the charts in five years
- a name with more sound in itRamona runs 3 syllables, Remy 2
- plenty of nickname options5 recorded short forms — Mona, Romy and Ro
Choose Remy if you want…
- a name most people already know#718 in 2025, 390 babies that year
- a name past its most crowded yearsRemy is stepping back from its peak
- a name with fewer syllablesRemy is 2 syllables to Ramona's 3
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
Ramona
Strengths
- Spelled the way it sounds and read correctly on sight by most English speakers, with no competing variants to explain.
- Works unchanged in Spanish, Catalan and Romanian — useful in a bilingual family.
- An unbroken run in American records going back to the nineteenth century, so it has never needed reintroducing.
To consider
- The children's books about Ramona Quimby are still widely read, so a child may meet her own name in a classroom read-aloud — often a delight, occasionally the source of a teasing nickname from the title Ramona the Pest.
- It is currently far more common among older generations than among children, which means a Ramona today will likely be the only one in her school and may be told the name belonged to someone's aunt.
- People who know the name will spell it fine; people who don't sometimes reach for Romona or Ramonda, so expect an occasional correction.
Remy
Strengths
- Two syllables, five letters, and spelled the way an English speaker hears it — no accent to lose in forms and databases.
- Works for a girl or a boy without either use looking like a mistake, since American records carry both.
- A documented line running back to late-antique Gaul, with living forms in French, Italian, Spanish and Polish.
To consider
- Two pronunciations compete: the English REM-ee and the French ray-MEE. Both are correct for the name, so expect to correct people occasionally, and expect the correction to be easy.
- Rémy Martin cognac and the cooking rat in Pixar's Ratatouille are the two associations most Americans reach for first. Neither is a problem, but you will hear about them.
- The spelling splits three ways — Remy, Remi, Rémy — so the name will sometimes be written back to you in a form you didn't choose.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
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 Ramona and Remy 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 Ramona and Remy?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Ramona or Remy — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Ramona or Remy?
- Remy, in 2025: Remy ranked #718 with 390 babies; Ramona ranked #733 with 373 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Ramona or Remy?
- Ramona. Over the last five years Ramona moved up 70 places; Remy moved down 222 places.
- Which is the older name, Ramona or Remy?
- Ramona entered the US charts in 1881; Remy entered the US charts in 1964. On the American record, Ramona is the older name.
- How many people are named Ramona and Remy?
- About 46,000 people named Ramona are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 8,200 people named Remy are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Ramonas or Remys in the classroom?
- Ramona will almost certainly be the only one in school. Remy 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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