We propose a 1st and 2nd order polarization mode dispersion emulator (PMDE) with one variable differential group delay (DGD) element using birefringence crystals and four polarization controllers (PCs). Monte Carlo simulations demonstrate that the output 1st and 2nd order polarization mode dispersion (PMD) generated by the PMDE consists with statistic theory. Compared with former PMDEs, this design is tunable, lower-cost, and more integrated for fabrication, which shows response time of 150 μs, response frequency of 3.8 kHz, working wavelength of 1550 nm, total power consumption of less than 3 W, working range of 0---84 ps and 0---3600 ps2 for 1st and 2nd order PMD emulation, respectively. Also, it is programmable and can be controlled by either singlechip or computer. It can be applied to study the outage probability of optical communication systems due to PMD effect and the effectiveness of PMD compensation.