Cherilyn
Feminine
Cherilyn Sarkisian became Cher. She dropped everything but the first syllable, which is about as thorough a shortening as anyone has managed, and the name she started with rose sharply in American records through the years when she was most visible — so a name that had been quietly present since the 1940s got its decade from a woman who no longer used it.
How old is the name Cherilyn?
Cherilyn first appears in US birth records in 1941 — 84 years ago. The typical Cherilyn alive today was born around 1974, making them about 51 years old. About 2,100 people named Cherilyn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Cherilyn most popular?
Cherilyn peaked in 1972, reaching #823 nationally. Today it ranks #14942, 14,119 places below that high. See the whole 1972 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Cheryl to Cherilyn
The story of Cherilyn
Cheryl arrived in American and British records in the 1920s and became very widely given by mid-century, with no one able to say quite where it came from. American naming then extended it the way it extended everything, producing Cherilyn, Cherylyn and Sherilyn. The record for this spelling begins in 1941 and peaks in 1972 — which is the height of one performer's first period of fame, and the name she was born with. The shortening she made of it is now far better known than the original.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No derivation is documented. Cheryl, which the front resembles, appeared in America in the twentieth century without a clear ancestor — it is variously connected to the French chérie, dear, and to Charlotte, and neither is demonstrated. The -lyn ending comes from Lynn, a Welsh word for a lake, and carries nothing.
How the name formed
- Cheryl
- Cherilyn
Pronouncing Cherilyn
SHER-ih-lin
Three syllables, stress on the first, the last two light. Some families say sher-ih-LIN with the weight at the back; the front-stress version is much the commoner.
Nicknames for Cherilyn
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1941
- Most girls named
- 1975130 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #823reached in 1972
- Change vs 2016
- 0.0%5 in 2025, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Cherilyns among us
people named Cherilyn are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 321,453 born in 2025 was named Cherilyn
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Vonnie test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Cherilyn's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Vonnie climbed just as high around 1935, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Vonnie's path sketches the road Cherilyn is walking now.
Cherilyn sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Cherilyn beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Cherilyn in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Three short forms are available and they belong to quite different registers.
- Cheri and Lyn are both standing names, so the shortening is never a fragment.
- It is entirely readable on sight.
- Cher is so completely attached to one person that the short form is effectively unavailable.
- Sherilyn, Cherylyn and Cherylynn all appear, so the spelling has to be given.
- There is no documented meaning, and the base name's own origin is unresolved.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Cherilyn
Feminine · #14942 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Cherilyns are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,100 people named Cherilyn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Cherilyn in 2025?
- Cherilyn ranks #14942 among US girl names in 2025, with 5 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Cherilyn?
- About 1 in every 321,453 US girls born in 2025 was named Cherilyn — 5 in all.
- Will my child share the name Cherilyn with classmates?
- Cherilyn will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Cherilyn
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Hester#14942 · Lyda#14942 · Zula#14942 · Zona#14942 · Ula#14942 · Belva#14942 · Lucetta#14942 · Leala#14942
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Cherilyn? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Cherilyn and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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