Sheryl is a girl name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Sheryl means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Sheryl across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Sheryl has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Sheryl is a girl name of Germanic origin meaning “free man”. A variant of Cheryl, related to Charlotte.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 79,026 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 88 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 352 births |
| New Zealand top 100, since 1954 | 1,688 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Sheryl per year, United States (1921 to 2025). United States peaked in 1957 (4,144/yr) · Scotland peaked in 1979 (23/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 1997 (12/yr).
Sheryl has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1957, when it ranked #208 nationally (given to 4,144 babies that year), and a popular choice in the 1950s.
Cheryl · Sherrill · Cheryle · Sherryl · Sharla · Shirl · Cheryll · Cherryl
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