Of English origin.
From the Old Saxon name “Æðelmær”, which derived from the elements “æðel” and “mær”, meaning “noble” and “prominent” respectively.
Therefore the meaning of the name Elmer is “noble and famous”.
Several sources mention that people in the United States started using it as a given name to honour the Elmer Brothers who were strong supporters of the American Revolution.
For expecting parents from the U.S.A., this may be an awkward choice because people may associate the name with cartoon characters such as Elmer Fudd or Elmer the Cow.
It’s also the name of the main character in Sinclair Lewis’ novel “Elmer Gantry”. When the story was adapted for the big screen, Burt Lancaster was cast for the leading role.
Elmer was in the Top-100 of the baby names lists for as long as 50 years, and in 2010 it dropped out of Top-1000.
Other forms of the name are Elm and Elmo.
Famous bearers are Elmer Bernstein, Elmer Rice.