Shari
Shari is an English feminine given name inspired by the French chérie, meaning darling. It has also been used as a diminutive of names starting with or containing the sound Cher- or Sher- such as Cherilyn, Cheryl, Sharon, or Sherilyn for females.
- English
Meaning & Origin of Shari
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Shari is an English feminine given name inspired by the French chérie, meaning darling. It has also been used as a diminutive of names starting with or containing the sound Cher- or Sher- such as Cherilyn, Cheryl, Sharon, or Sherilyn for females.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Shari
Shari first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1927, with 9 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 1961: 3,117 births, good for #142 nationwide. About 50% of every Shari on record arrived during the 1960s, its defining decade. Shari last appeared in the published SSA data in 2024, with 6 recorded births — it has not charted nationally since. All told, over 41K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1920s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Shari
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Shari. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Names that sound like Shari
Phonetically similar names — useful when Shari is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Shari
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About the name Shari
Shari is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1927 and has accumulated 41K births in the dataset. Shari's peak popularity came in 1961 when it ranked #142. Use the chart and map above to compare Shari's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1961 →
- Names of the 1960s →
- Names starting with "S" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.