Chermaine
A French feminine name related to the Old Germanic word "Carman," meaning "song."
Name Census estimates that about 165 living Americans carry the first name Chermaine. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Chermaine today is around 45 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Chermaine births was 1974 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Chermaine. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
165
~ 1 in 2,077,299 Americans
Peak year
1974
17 babies that year
Average age
45
years old
1994 SSA rank
#12,090
Tracked since 1970
Popularity
Chermaine: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Chermaine from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 82 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Chermaine remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Chermaine by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Chermaine during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Chermaines live
Origin
Meaning and history of Chermaine
The name Chermaine is a feminine given name derived from the French language, specifically originating from the Old French word "chiere," meaning "beloved" or "dear one." It is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century, as a combination of the Old French words "chier" (dear) and "aimée" (beloved).
One of the earliest known historical references to the name Chermaine can be found in medieval French literature, where it was occasionally used as a character name. However, its usage was relatively rare during this period, and it was not until the Renaissance era that the name gained more popularity.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Chermaine began to appear more frequently in various records and documents across France and parts of Europe. One notable bearer of the name was Chermaine de Bourbon (1594-1638), a French noblewoman and the daughter of King Henry IV of France and his mistress, Gabrielle d'Estrées.
In the 18th century, Chermaine Rousseau (1712-1786) was a French author and philosopher who contributed to the Enlightenment movement. Her writings on education and women's rights were influential during her time.
Another historical figure with the name Chermaine was Chermaine Guérin (1891-1949), a French Catholic nun who founded the Congregation of the Cross and Passion and worked towards the betterment of women's education and social welfare.
In the 20th century, Chermaine Gaddis (1909-1988) was an American author and journalist known for her works on African American culture and history, including her book "Birdseye: Adventures of a Curious Man."
Chermaine Tourres (1917-2010) was a French resistance fighter during World War II and later became a member of the French National Assembly, advocating for women's rights and social justice.
While the name Chermaine has French origins, it has been adopted and used in various cultures and countries over time, although its popularity has varied across regions and time periods.
People
Chermaine + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Chermaine as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Chermaine: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Chermaine?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 165 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Chermaine going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 2,077,299 US residents.
Is Chermaine a common name?
We classify Chermaine as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 178 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Chermaine most popular?
The single biggest year for Chermaine was 1974, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Chermaine is about 45 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Chermaine a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Chermaine in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.