Cameo

♀ Girl

How to Pronounce Cameo

Pronounced KAM-ee-oh /ˈkæm.i.oʊ/Medium

Meaning: Cameo is the English word cameo used as a name, from Italian cammeo, a small relief portrait carved in shell or gemstone. As a girl's name it reads as a jewel-and-art word-name, delicate and old-fashioned in its imagery.Low

In 30 seconds: Cameo names a carved gem portrait — an artful word-name (said 'KAM-ee-oh'). A rare, decorative pick that peaked in the early 1990s.

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Origin LowItalian, English

MeaningCameo is the English word cameo used as a name, from Italian cammeo, a small relief portrait carved in shell or gemstone. As a girl's name it reads as a jewel-and-art word-name, delicate and old-fashioned in its imagery.

U.S. rank (2020)#13773 ↘ Falling

2020 U.S. births6 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)

Peak year1992

Total births (all-time)≈ 1,501

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Cameo takes the word for a carved shell or gemstone portrait, from Italian cammeo, and wears it as a name. It appeared quietly across the twentieth century and reached its slight high around 1992, always a rare, jewelry-box choice.

A Cameo from the peak is in her early thirties. As a word-name it never became common, but its soft rhythm and antique-jewel imagery fit today's taste for delicate word-names like Opal and Pearl, giving it a plausible if unproven revival path.

Did you know? The word cameo also gave its name to the funk band Cameo, whose 1986 hit 'Word Up!' kept the term in pop culture in the years before the name's small peak.

Overall data confidence 55%

References — Cameo — Word-name from Italian cammeo; funk band Cameo

Variations

CammeoKameo

Nicknames

CamiMia

Famous Bearers

Famous bearers coming soon.

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Romy— a like offbeat vintage-modern short name

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Cameo mean?

Cameo is the word for a carved gem or shell portrait, from Italian cammeo, used as a name.

How do you pronounce Cameo?

It's said KAM-ee-oh /ˈkæm.i.oʊ/ — three syllables, stress on the first.

Is Cameo a boy or girl name?

Cameo is used as a girl's name.

How popular is Cameo?

Cameo is a rare, decorative word-name that had its small peak in the early nineteen-nineties.