Sharmel
A feminine name of Arabic origin meaning "bright" or "sublime".
Name Census estimates that about 107 living Americans carry the first name Sharmel. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Sharmel today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sharmel births was 1970 (9 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sharmel. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Sharmel with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
107
~ 1 in 3,203,312 Americans
Peak year
1970
9 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
1993 SSA rank
#15,394
Tracked since 1967
Census
Sharmel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 162 people with the first name Sharmel, which placed it at #43,512 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#43,512
National first-name rank
People counted
162
162 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
74.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sharmel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sharmel is Black at 74.7%. The next largest groups are White (19.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Sharmel described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Sharmel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American74.7% · 121
- White19.8% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 4
- Two or more races2.5% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 1
Popularity
Sharmel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Sharmel from the 1960s through to the 1990s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 68 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Sharmel 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 Sharmel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Sharmel
The name Sharmel is believed to have its origins in Arabic, with its roots tracing back to the Middle East and the region's rich cultural and linguistic history. The name itself is derived from the Arabic word "sharama," which means "honor" or "dignity." This suggests that Sharmel was initially bestowed upon individuals as a symbol of respect and esteem within their communities.
In the ancient times of the Middle East, names often carried significant meanings and were carefully chosen to reflect the hopes and aspirations of parents for their children. The name Sharmel, with its connotation of honor, may have been a way for families to express their desire for their children to lead honorable and dignified lives, upholding the values and traditions of their society.
While there are no definitive records of the name Sharmel appearing in ancient texts or religious scriptures, its linguistic roots in Arabic suggest that it has been in use for centuries, perhaps even as far back as the rise of Islam in the 7th century CE. As Arabic culture and language spread across the Middle East and parts of Africa, the name Sharmel likely traveled with it, adapting to local dialects and cultural influences.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Sharmel can be found in the writings of the 12th-century Arab philosopher and physician, Averroes (1126-1198 CE). In his works, he mentions a scholar named Sharmel ibn Abi al-Qasim, who was renowned for his expertise in astronomy and mathematics.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who have borne the name Sharmel. One such figure was Sharmel al-Shami (1280-1349 CE), a Syrian scholar and poet who was renowned for his contributions to Arabic literature and his mastery of the Arabic language.
Another prominent figure was Sharmel al-Baghdadi (1590-1657 CE), an Iraqi mathematician and astronomer who made significant advancements in the fields of trigonometry and celestial mechanics. His work was widely studied and influential in the Islamic world during his time.
In more recent history, Sharmel Nabhani (1899-1977) was a Lebanese writer and political activist who played a pivotal role in the struggle for Lebanon's independence from French rule. Her writings and activism inspired many and contributed to the country's eventual sovereignty.
Sharmel Darwish (1924-2005) was an Egyptian actress and singer who became a cultural icon in the Arab world. Her captivating performances on stage and screen, as well as her powerful voice, made her a beloved figure and a symbol of Arab artistry and creativity.
Lastly, Sharmel Husseini (1945-2021) was a Palestinian-American activist and educator who dedicated her life to advocating for Palestinian rights and promoting understanding between cultures. Her tireless efforts and commitment to justice earned her widespread respect and admiration.
People
Sharmel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sharmel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Sharmel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sharmel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 107 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sharmel 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 3,203,312 US residents.
Is Sharmel a common name?
We classify Sharmel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 65.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 117 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sharmel most popular?
The single biggest year for Sharmel was 1970, when 9 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sharmel is about 48 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Sharmel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 162 people with the name Sharmel, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #43,512 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Sharmel in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Sharmel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Sharmel leans strongly female. 151 people counted with this name were female (94.4%), compared with 9 male bearers (5.6%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Sharmel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Sharmel is Black at 74.7%. The next largest groups are White (19.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.5%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Sharmel most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Sharmel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.7% (121 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Sharmel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sharmel a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sharmel 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.
Is Sharmel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sharmel in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Sharmel can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many people are named Sharmel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.