Amber is a feminine given name taken from amber, the fossilized tree resin that is often used in the making of jewelry. The word can also refer to a yellowish-orange color.
The name was in occasional use in the early 1800s, according to United States census records. It first came into regular use in the Anglosphere in the late 1800s along with other gemstone names popular during the Victorian era. It rose in popularity following the release of the 1944 historical romance novel Forever Amber by American author Kathleen Winsor. Amber has been a popular name in most English speaking countries. In the United States, it ranked among the top 1,000 names at different points between 1880 and 1916 and again consistently between 1945 and 2024. It peaked in usage there in the 1990s, when it was the 20th most popular name in the United States. It has ranked among the top 50 names for girls in England and Wales, Scotland, Ireland, Belgium, Australia and Canada in recent years. Variants have also been popular in other countries, including Ámbar in Spanish, which is currently among the most popular names for girls in Argentina, Ambre in French, which was among the top 10 names for newborn girls in France in recent years, and the Italian Ambra, which was among the top 10 names for baby girls in Albania and among the top 50 names for newborn girls in Italy in recent years.
English elaborations of the name in use include Amberlee, Amberleigh, Amberley, Amberli, Amberlie, Amberlin, Amberlinn, Amberly, Amberlyn and Amberlynn, among others.
Women
Men Amber Gurung (1938–2016), Nepalese composer, singer, and lyricist
Fictional characters Amber Addison, in the US TV series Hannah Montana, played by Shanica Knowles Amber Atkins, in the 1999 US black comedy mockumentary film Drop Dead Gorgeous, played by Kirsten Dunst Amber Bailey, in the Irish TV crime drama series Amber, played by Lauryn Canny Amber Brown, in a book by Paula Danziger Amber Freeman, in the Scream series, played by Mikey Madison Amber Gemstone, in the US black comedy crime TV series The Righteous Gemstones, played by Cassidy Freeman Amber Harvey, in the UK medical soap opera Doctors, played by Lisa Ellis Amber Hearst, in the UK TV programme series The Story of Tracy Beaker, played by Alicia Hooper Amber Hunt, in Malibu Comics' Exiles comic book series Amber Johannsen, in the UK police procedural TV series The Bill, played by Myfanwy Waring Amber Kalirai, in the UK TV soap opera Coronation Street, played by Nikki Patel Amber Mariens, in the 1995 US coming-of-age teen comedy film Clueless, and the TV series of the same name, played by Elisa Donovan Amber Martin, in the Australian TV soap opera Neighbours, played by Alison Whyte Amber Millington, in the US TV series House of Anubis, played by Ana Mulvoy-Ten Amber Moore, in the US TV soap operas The Bold and the Beautiful and The Young and the Restless, played by Adrienne Frantz Amber Murdoch, in the Scottish TV soap opera River City, played by Lorna Anderson and Jenny Hulse Amber Pigal-Simpson, Homer Simpson's illegal wife, voiced by Pamela Hayden Amber Sharpe, in the UK soap opera Hollyoaks, played by Lydia Lloyd-Henry and Lauren Gabrielle-Thomas Amber Simmons, in the Australian TV soap opera Home and Away, played by Maddy Jevic Amber Sweet, in the 2008 US Gothic rock opera Repo! The Genetic Opera, played by Paris Hilton Amber Turner, in the Australian TV soap opera Neighbours, played by Jenna Rosenow Amber Volakis, in the US TV series House, played by Anne Dudek Amber Von Tussle, in the 1988 US comedy film Hairspray, played by Colleen Ann Fitzpatrick & later played by Dove Cameron in Hairspray Live Amber Williams, in the 2006 US direct-to-video slasher film I'll Always Know What You Did Last Summer, played by Brooke Nevin Amber, in the 1952 Hindi costume action romance thriller film Amber, played by Tanuja (young Amber) and Nargis (adult Amber) Amber, in the anime series Darker than Black Amber (The One-Legged Hypoglycemic), in Saturday Night Live, played by Amy Poehler
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