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 [ 3 syll. e-bo-ny, eb-ony ] The girl name Ebony is also used as a boy name, though it is far more popular for girls. It is pronounced EHBahNiy KEY. Ebony is of English origin and it is also used mainly in English. From ebony ; ebenius 'black wood' ; ebenos 'black wood' ; hbnj. The first name is derived from the English word referring to black wood, which is itself from the Late Latin ebenius ('black wood'), the Old Greek ebenos ('black wood'), and ultimately the Egyptian 'hbnj'. It was first used in the 20th century, in allusion to the beauty and the value of black wood. It was popular mainly among Afro-Americans, especially from the 1970s to the 1990s. The spelling variants Ebbony (English), Ebone (English), Ebonee (English), Eboney (English), Eboni (English), Ebonie (English), and Ebonni (English) are forms of Ebony. Ebony is unusual as a baby girl name. Its usage peaked modestly in 1982 with 0.126% of baby girls being named Ebony. It had a ranking of #132 then. The baby name has fallen out of favor since then, and is of only irregular use today. Among all girl names in its family, Ebony was nevertheless the most popular in 2008. Ebony has in the last century been mainly given to girls. Baby names that sound like Ebony include the English Ebbony, the English Ebonee, the English Eboney, the English Eboni, the English Ebonie, the English Ebonni, the French Eponine, the Indian Evani, the Indian Evina, the English Ebone, the Greek Efimia, the French Evaine, the English and Greek Evan, the English Evanne, the Russian Evfemiya, the Spanish Eviana, the Spanish Evin, the English and French Evon, the English and French Evonne, and the Spanish Epifania. KEY: Pronunciation for Ebony: EH as in "Ed (EH.D)" ; B as in "be (B.IY)" ; AH as in "hut (HH.AH.T)" ; N as in "knee (N.IY)" ; IY as in "eat (IY.T)"   |
