Eva Longoria’s 3 Sisters: All About Esmeralda, Elizabeth and Emily

Eva Longoria is the youngest of her sisters

Eva Longoria’s biggest role models are her three sisters: Elizabeth “Liza,” Esmeralda and Emily.

The Longoria siblings are ninth-generation Americans, whose ancestors emigrated from Spain to Mexico in the 1600s. In a profile for The Wall Street Journal, Eva shared that her family lived through the Texas Revolution in 1836, which turned their 4,500 acres of farmland near the Rio Grande into United States soil. When they weren’t visiting relatives in Mexico, that’s where Eva and her sisters called home.

Living in south Texas, the girls grew up surrounded by educators. Their mother, Ella Longoria, became a special needs teacher when Liza, the oldest sister, was born with an intellectual disability. “My mother even applied to be a teacher’s assistant and was assigned to my sister’s class. She followed Liza from grade to grade,” Eva told WSJ.

After Liza, the family grew again with the additions of Esmeralda and Emily. The youngest of her siblings, Eva was born on March 15, 1975.

During a 2023 interview with PEOPLE, the Desperate Housewives alum commented on how there was never a shortage of female empowerment in the Longoria household. “I come from a family of independent, strong women,” said Eva, adding, “I didn't have to look far for those role models.”

“My mom raised four girls, one child with special needs, had a full-time job, had dinner on the table every day at six, was at every band practice, cheerleading practice, everything,” she explained. “And so for me, it's like, ‘Wow.’ I always think, ‘I'm not doing enough in my life!’ ”

Here’s everything to know about Eva Longoria’s sisters, Esmeralda, Elizabeth and Emily.

They grew up in Corpus Christi, Texas

The Longoria daughters were raised on their family ranch near Corpus Christi, Texas, “in an area where nine members of my family lived on part of our original land,” the actress told WSJ. They lived in a small house with just one bathroom, but the land around them was rich with vegetable gardens, fruit trees, chickens and livestock.

While speaking with the The Beverly Hills Courier, Eva described her upbringing as a “gift.”

“Growing up on a farm ... gives you an appreciation for nature, animals, gardening and where food comes from. My dad would never let us eat fast food because we grew so many vegetables. He said there was no reason to ever eat out. We would pull carrots from the ground and just eat them,” she recalled.

Their names all begin with the letter “E”

On their mother’s side of the family, Esmeralda, Elizabeth, Emily and Eva are the second generation of siblings to be given names that all begin with the letter “E.” Having married a man whose moniker also starts with an “E,” Ella knew she had to keep the alliteration tradition going with her family.

“My mom’s mom did that. And my mom chose to continue it. My mom’s brothers and sisters all start with an ‘E.’ All my aunts, Elda, Elsa, Edna ... There’s nine of them. Crazy,” Eva told The Beverly Hills Courier.

They weren’t taught Spanish as kids

Fans may be surprised to hear that Spanish is actually Eva’s third language — her firsts being English and French. It wasn’t until Eva was an adult that she learned the language, she revealed on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast.

“I didn’t grow up speaking Spanish. [My parents] spoke Spanish to each other, but they didn’t teach us Spanish,” she said on the 2023 episode. On why they didn’t, she explained, “That time — and still — there was a big push for assimilation for kids by the school system and by society of like, ‘Don’t let them have an accent,’ and ‘Don’t let them be othered,’ and ‘Don’t let them speak any other language.’ ”

Their favorite childhood pastime was hunting with their dad

At 7 years old, Eva knew how to hunt a deer, catch a fish and shoot a gun. When his daughters weren’t in school or tending to crops, Enrique Longoria, who worked as a rancher and mechanical engineer, was teaching Eva and her sisters how to live off the land and be a “pioneer woman.”

“[I’ve been] hunting with my dad since I [was] six,” the actress said during a 2005 appearance on NBC’s Dateline. “I can handle a gun. I could skin a deer, I could skin a pig. I can pluck quail — you name it, I’ve done it.”

“My first pet was a cow. I mean, it was definitely different,” she added.

Liza was born with an intellectual disability

While appearing on Kerry Washington’s YouTube series, Street You Grew Up On, Eva opened up about Liza’s mental disability, and how it affected their adolescence.

“My childhood was very much shaped by my older sister’s special needs. [The doctors] told my parents she’ll never walk, she’ll never talk, she’ll never have an emotion ... and she’s probably going to pass away very, very early,” Eva shared. Now in her fifties with a job and a boyfriend, Liza is doing “amazing.”

Liza has also been an inspiration for Eva, who has dedicated a large part of her career to philanthropy. The actress opened up to PEOPLE about her family’s history with volunteering and why she decided to continue that work as an adult.

“We kind of grew up in her [Liza’s] world and that meant volunteering a lot, and that meant knowing community programs and it just meant giving back to people we never knew,” Eva explained. “I always wondered, ‘Who are these people helping our family with this program or that class?’ And my mom would explain they were philanthropists. So I knew that word very early on in my life and that’s what I wanted to be. I said, ‘I want to be a philanthropist when I grow up.’ ”

Eva and her sisters didn’t resemble each other as kids

While Esmeralda, Elizabeth and Emily were born with blonde hair and hazel eyes just like their mom, Eva had black hair and dark eyes. “I wasn’t the pretty one,” the businesswoman joked on the Not Skinny But Not Fat podcast.

The Unplugging star said her family used to affectionately refer to her as “la prieta fea,” which means “the ugly dark one” in Spanish. While her inner circle considered the nickname a term of endearment, it struck a chord with Eva, especially when strangers began taking notice of her and her sisters’ physical differences.

“I grew up as not the pretty one, so there was a conscious decision when I was young to be the funny one,” she added.

They are Eva’s biggest supporters

Esmeralda, Liza and Emily live relatively private lives, though that hasn’t stopped them from stepping into the spotlight to support their famous little sister. In July 2017, Esmeralda and Emily accompanied Eva to the Global Gift Gala in Marbella, Spain, whose funding, in part, was donated to the Eva Longoria Foundation.

A year later in April 2018, the trio attended Eva’s Hollywood Walk of Fame induction. They cozied up for a photo with the actress’ newly minted star alongside their mom.

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