Elmer, of German origin, is a historic given name derived from the Germanic 'Almaric', which translates to 'work' or 'noble and famous'. It was popular in the Middle Ages but has since become less common, perhaps due to its association with older generations.
The name Elmer experienced significant popularity fluctuations over time. It peaked in the early 20th century, with a high of 67 births in 1928. However, it declined sharply thereafter, dropping to single digits by the mid-1940s and remaining low since then, with only 5 births recorded in both 1962 and 1963. Overall, there were 1753 children named Elmer born between 1885 and 1980.