Emmett is an English surname that grew out of a medieval pet form of Emma, so it carries the Germanic meaning "whole" or "universal". Doc Emmett Brown from Back to the Future and the name's role in the civil rights history of Emmett Till have kept it in American memory. Emmett ranked number 740 in 2000 and number 139 in 2015, reached number 103 in 2021 and stands at number 121 in 2025.