Sharif
Masculine · “Arabic sharif”
Sharif is overwhelmingly a boys’ name — 2,685 boys against 5 girls since 1880.
Sheriff has nothing to do with sharif. The English word is shire-reeve, the king's officer in a shire, and it is pure Old English. The resemblance to the Arabic title is one of the most repeated false etymologies in the language.
How old is the name Sharif?
Sharif first appears in US birth records in 1963 — 62 years ago. The typical Sharif alive today was born around 1991, making them about 34 years old. About 2,600 people named Sharif are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Sharif most popular?
Sharif peaked in 1977, reaching #954 nationally. Today it ranks #9714, 8,760 places below that high. See the whole 1977 chart.
Where it comes from
From sharif to Sharif
The story of Sharif
The Sharifs of Mecca held the guardianship of the holy cities from the tenth century until 1925, claiming descent from the Prophet through Hasan ibn Ali, and the last of them, Hussein bin Ali, led the Arab Revolt of 1916 and became King of the Hijaz; his sons founded the dynasties of Iraq and Jordan. The title is used more widely for anyone of that descent, alongside sayyid, which conventionally marks descent through Husayn. The English sheriff is a separate word entirely: scir, a shire, plus gerefa, a reeve or officer, giving the crown's representative in a county, an office that dates from before the Conquest and traveled to America with the colonists. The two words have converged in sound and have no connection, which does not stop the derivation being confidently repeated.
Meaning
Arabic sharif, noble or honorable
Sharif is Arabic for noble, eminent or honorable, from a root meaning to be high. It is a title borne by descendants of Muhammad through his grandson Hasan, and was the title of the rulers of Mecca. The English word sheriff is Old English scirgerefa, a shire reeve, and is unrelated despite the resemblance. The American peak is 1977.
How the name formed
- sharif
- Sharif
Related forms: Sharif · Sharif · Serif
Pronouncing Sharif
shah-REEF
Two syllables, stress on the second. Arabic makes the final f clear and unaspirated. English speakers sometimes stress the first syllable instead.
Nicknames for Sharif
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
- 1963
- Most boys named
- 198082 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #954reached in 1977
- Change vs 2024
- −61.1%7 in 2025, from 18
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.
Sharif in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Sharif in Arabic — same name
- Sharif in Urdu — same name
- Serif in Turkish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York, California, Wisconsin.
Sharifs among us
people named Sharif are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 244,011 born in 2025 was named Sharif
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 Wendel test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Sharif's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Wendel climbed just as high around 1940, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Wendel's path sketches the road Sharif is walking now.
Sharif 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
Sharif beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Sharif in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The meaning is clear and carries genuine weight.
- Six letters and two syllables, easy to say.
- It is recognized across the entire Muslim world.
- It is close in sound to the English word sheriff, which is unrelated.
- The stressed ending is unusual for English disyllables.
- Shareef and Sherif compete as transliterations.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Sharif to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Sharif? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Sharif
Masculine · #9714 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Sharifs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,600 people named Sharif are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Sharif in 2025?
- Sharif ranks #9714 among US boy names in 2025, with 7 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Sharif?
- About 1 in every 244,011 US boys born in 2025 was named Sharif — 7 in all.
- Will my child share the name Sharif with classmates?
- Sharif will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Sharif
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Vern#9714 · Abrahm#9714 · Sid#9714 · Hartwell#9714 · Kwan#9714 · Adrean#9714 · Chancey#9714 · Bob#9714
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Sharif? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Sharif and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle