Amber | Name Meaning & Origin

Color Names, Nature Names, American Names, English Names, Jewel Names, Green Names, Earthy Names

English speaking countries

Amber is a fossilized tree resin commonly found on the shores of the Baltic and North Seas. Since ancient times, its primary use has been decorative. The Amber Road was the trade route from the Baltic to Italy through which amber was traded.

Though used occasionally in the Victorian era, the name Amber came into popular use in the 20th century with Kathleen Winsor's 1940s novel, "Forever Amber."

An 'Amber Alert' is issued in the US and Canada when a child is confirmed to have been abducted by the police. It was named after Amber Hagerman, who was abducted and killed in 1996, and is also an acronym for 'America's Missing: Broadcasting Emergency Response'.

Amber Tamblyn is an actress and Amber Valetta is a model.

In the USA, Amber was popular at the turn of the 20th century. It then fell out of popular use in the 1920s and 30s, but was revived following the publication of Winsor's novel in 1944. It reached it's highest popularity in 1986, and has been descending since then. In the UK, it featured in the Top 50 in 2007, and was #19 in Belgium in 2006.