NameCensus.
Rare

Sharyl

A feminine name of English origin, a variation of Sharon meaning "meadow" or "plain".

Name Census estimates that about 1,884 living Americans carry the first name Sharyl. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Sharyl today is around 65 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sharyl births was 1961 (131 babies).

This page is the full Name Census profile for Sharyl. 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

1.9K

~ 1 in 181,929 Americans

Peak year

1961

131 babies that year

Average age

65

years old

1998 SSA rank

#16,190

Tracked since 1937

Popularity

Sharyl: popularity over time

The SSA tracks Sharyl from the 1930s through to the 1990s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 944 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.

Babies born per year

0336698131194019501960197019801990

Decades

Sharyl 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 Sharyl during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.

DecadeMaleFemaleTotal
1930s04545
1940s0566566
1950s0730730
1960s0944944
1970s0230230
1980s0102102
1990s01414

Geography

Where Sharyls live

The SSA's state-level files cover 17 states and territories. California, Michigan, Minnesota recorded the most babies named Sharyl, while Florida, Oklahoma, North Dakota recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 64 registrations each.

Origin

Meaning and history of Sharyl

The name Sharyl is a modern variation of the Hebrew name Shira, which means "song" or "poetry." It originated in ancient Israel and can be traced back to the Old Testament, where it was used as a feminine name.

In the Book of Psalms, the word "shir" is used numerous times to refer to songs of praise and worship. The name Shira was likely derived from this word, reflecting the musical and poetic nature of the name.

The earliest recorded use of the name Shira dates back to the Middle Ages, when it was commonly used among Jewish communities in Europe and the Middle East. During this period, the name was sometimes spelled as "Sheira" or "Shaira."

One of the earliest known individuals with the name Shira was Shira Gorby, a 14th-century Jewish poet from Spain. Her works, written in Hebrew, explored themes of love, spirituality, and the experiences of women during that time.

In the 19th century, the name Shira gained popularity among Jewish communities in Eastern Europe and Russia. One notable figure was Shira Rube, a Russian-born writer and activist who fought for women's rights and education in the late 1800s.

The modern variation, Sharyl, emerged in the 20th century, particularly in English-speaking countries. This spelling was likely influenced by the English name Sharon, which has a similar sound and meaning (derived from the Hebrew word "sharan," meaning "plain" or "level ground").

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Sharyl was Sharyl Buckley, an American actress and singer born in 1918. She appeared in several Broadway productions and films during the 1940s and 1950s.

Another notable Sharyl was Sharyl Attkisson, an American journalist and author born in 1961. She worked for CBS News for over two decades and won numerous awards for her investigative reporting.

Sharyl Nason, born in 1945, was a Canadian figure skater who won multiple national and international championships in the 1960s. She later became a renowned skating coach and choreographer.

In the literary world, Sharyl Haley is a contemporary American writer and poet known for her works exploring themes of identity, family, and the human experience.

Sharyl Rene Roque, born in 1989, is a Filipino actress and model who has appeared in numerous television shows and films in the Philippines.

While the name Sharyl is not as common as its original Hebrew counterpart, Shira, it has gained a unique identity and continues to be used in various parts of the world, carrying with it the musical and poetic connotations of its ancient origins.

People

Sharyl + last name combinations

How many people share a full name with Sharyl 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

Sharyl: questions and answers

How many people in the U.S. are named Sharyl?

Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,884 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sharyl 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 181,929 US residents.

Is Sharyl a common name?

We classify Sharyl as "Rare". It ranks above 93.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,631 babies have been registered with this name.

When was Sharyl most popular?

The single biggest year for Sharyl was 1961, when 131 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sharyl is about 65 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.

Is Sharyl a female name?

Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sharyl 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.

N
Name Census
namecensus.com

There are 1.9K people

with the first name

Sharyl

Look up any American name

Share this result