Find out how popular the last name Sharif is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sharif.

Sharif, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Sharif surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sharif in America

Sharif is the 8493rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sharif surname appeared 3,879 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Sharif.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sharif to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Sharif

The surname Sharif is of Arabic origin, and it can be traced back to the medieval period in the Middle East. The word "sharif" is derived from the Arabic term "sharaf," which means "nobility" or "nobility of descent." The Sharif family name has its roots in the Arabian Peninsula, particularly in modern-day Saudi Arabia and the surrounding regions.

In Islamic history, the title "Sharif" was bestowed upon individuals who claimed direct descent from the Prophet Muhammad through his grandson, Hasan ibn Ali. The Sharifs were regarded as members of the elite class and held significant religious and political influence in various parts of the Muslim world.

One of the earliest recorded references to the Sharif name can be found in the works of medieval Arab historians and chroniclers. The Sharif family played a prominent role in the governance of Mecca and Medina during the Abbasid Caliphate, which ruled from the 8th to the 13th century.

Among the notable historical figures bearing the surname Sharif is Idris I (789-828 CE), the founder of the Idrisid dynasty in Morocco. He was a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad and established the first Arab dynasty in Morocco. Another prominent figure was Sharif al-Husayn ibn Ali (1856-1931), the leader of the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I and the founder of the Hashemite dynasty.

During the medieval period, the Sharif family name was also associated with various Islamic dynasties and principalities across the Middle East and North Africa. For instance, the Sharifs of Mecca held significant influence in the region and were respected for their lineage and religious authority.

Other notable figures with the surname Sharif include Sharif Ali Khan (1823-1887), a prominent Pashtun leader and ruler of the Bahawalpur State in present-day Pakistan, and Sharif Pasha (1828-1887), an Ottoman statesman and diplomat who served as the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire.

The Sharif surname has also been found in various historical documents and records, including manuscripts and chronicles from the medieval Islamic world. It is important to note that the spelling of the name may have varied slightly in different regions and time periods, reflecting the linguistic and cultural diversity of the areas where it was used.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sharif

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sharif.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sharif was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Sharif has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Sharif was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Sharif, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!