Emmelichthys is a genus of marine ray-finned fishes belonging to the family Emmelichthyidae, the rovers and bonnetmouths.

[2] The genus is classified in the small family Emmelichthyidae which is included in the order Acanthuriformes.

[3] Emmelichthys prefices ichthys, meaning "fish" with emmeles, a word Richardson translated as "concinnus", that is something "skillfully put together", a reference to the "peculiarly neat aspect" of the E.

[4] There are seven species in the genus, including one newly described in 2024:[5][6] Emmelichthys fishes have slender cylindrical bodies, no deeper than 25% of their standard length.

[8] The largest species is E. nitidus with a maximum published total length of 55 cm (22 in).