Fun Facts About the Name Sharif
- More than 2 thousand babies named Sharif: U.S. records list 2,690 babies given the name Sharif from 1880 through 2025. Even 5 girls received the name Sharif - about 1 girl for every 537 boys.
What Does the Name Sharif Mean?
Sharif is an Arabic name meaning "noble," "honorable," or "highborn." It comes from the Arabic root sh-r-f (ش ر ف), which carries the sense of elevation, distinction, and honor. The adjective sharīf (شريف) means "noble" or "exalted," and the related verb sharafa means "to be noble" or "to be raised high."
The feminine form is Sharifa (شريفة), and the plural noun is shurafa (شرفاء). English spellings include Sherif and Shareef. The name is used in Arabic-speaking countries; the Turkish form is Şerif, and the name also appears in Persian, Urdu, and in Swahili-speaking parts of East Africa. In Islamic usage the word took on a more specific social sense as well: a sharīf is a descendant of the Prophet Muhammad, especially through his grandson Hasan. That hereditary use grew out of the word's basic sense of nobility and is a later extension of meaning rather than its literal etymology.
Sharif Name History & Origins
Sharīf was already a word for a noble or distinguished person in pre-Islamic Arabic. After the rise of Islam it was applied above all to the family of the Prophet Muhammad, and over the centuries it became the customary title in the Hejaz region of western Arabia for descendants of the Prophet through Hasan. In Iraq, Iran, and South Asia the term sayyid was generally preferred for descendants through Husayn. The two words overlap, and which one is used has varied by region and period.
The title's best-known political role was the Sharif of Mecca. By the tenth century, local sharifian families were governing the holy city and its surroundings, and the office later belonged to the Hashemite family. The Sharif of Mecca served as guardian of the holy places until the Saudi conquest of the Hejaz in 1925. In Morocco, ruling dynasties - the Idrisids and later the Alaouites - grounded their legitimacy in claimed descent from the Prophet and are described as sharifian.
In the Ottoman Empire the title şerif was used for descendants of the Prophet, and the name passed into Turkish, Persian, Urdu, and other languages of the Muslim world. As a personal name it occurs in the Middle East, North Africa, and South Asia, and among Muslim communities in East Africa, where it is also used as a surname. The Egyptian actor Omar Sharif, born Michel Shalhoub, is a well-known bearer of the name in the West.
How Popular is the Name Sharif?
Sharif recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 1980. Its best rank was #963 in 1977.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970 | #9,070 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #10,512 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2024 | #5,394 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 2023 | #6,831 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2022 | #6,099 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2021 | #4,473 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2020 | #4,396 | 23 | 0.0013% |
| 2019 | #4,087 | 26 | 0.0014% |
| 2018 | #5,074 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2017 | #6,284 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #3,873 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 2015 | #4,271 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2014 | #3,763 | 28 | 0.0015% |
| 2013 | #4,041 | 25 | 0.0013% |
| 2012 | #4,226 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2011 | #4,196 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2010 | #3,120 | 37 | 0.0019% |
| 2009 | #3,153 | 37 | 0.0019% |
| 2008 | #3,094 | 38 | 0.0019% |
| 2007 | #3,875 | 27 | 0.0013% |
| 2006 | #2,780 | 42 | 0.0020% |
| 2005 | #2,521 | 45 | 0.0023% |
| 2004 | #2,633 | 41 | 0.0021% |
| 2003 | #2,573 | 40 | 0.0020% |
| 2002 | #2,218 | 48 | 0.0025% |
| 2001 | #1,812 | 62 | 0.0032% |
| 2000 | #1,892 | 56 | 0.0029% |
| 1999 | #1,849 | 54 | 0.0028% |
| 1998 | #1,660 | 63 | 0.0033% |
| 1997 | #1,496 | 71 | 0.0038% |
| 1996 | #1,570 | 64 | 0.0034% |
| 1995 | #1,454 | 68 | 0.0036% |
| 1994 | #1,451 | 67 | 0.0035% |
| 1993 | #1,405 | 69 | 0.0035% |
| 1992 | #1,392 | 67 | 0.0034% |
| 1991 | #1,306 | 75 | 0.0037% |
| 1990 | #1,225 | 81 | 0.0039% |
| 1989 | #1,291 | 72 | 0.0036% |
| 1988 | #1,400 | 56 | 0.0029% |
| 1987 | #1,398 | 53 | 0.0028% |
| 1986 | #1,472 | 47 | 0.0026% |
| 1985 | #1,255 | 59 | 0.0032% |
| 1984 | #1,109 | 67 | 0.0037% |
| 1983 | #1,200 | 58 | 0.0032% |
| 1982 | #1,105 | 69 | 0.0038% |
| 1981 | #1,022 | 80 | 0.0045% |
| 1980 | #1,003 | 82 | 0.0046% |
| 1979 | #989 | 81 | 0.0047% |
| 1978 | #1,108 | 63 | 0.0038% |
| 1977 | #963 | 80 | 0.0049% |
| 1976 | #1,038 | 65 | 0.0041% |
| 1975 | #964 | 73 | 0.0047% |
| 1974 | #1,015 | 66 | 0.0042% |
| 1973 | #1,371 | 38 | 0.0024% |
| 1972 | #1,502 | 33 | 0.0020% |
| 1971 | #1,774 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 1970 | #2,719 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1969 | #1,967 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 1968 | #3,325 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1967 | #2,958 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1963 | #4,540 | 5 | 0.0002% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Sharif Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are spiritually intense and can sting or charm. Your name brings love and new starts into life and attracts money. In business, you are the creator and promoter of original ideas and usually enjoy considerable financial success. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You are very intuitive. You have a reservoir of inspired wisdom combined with inherited analytical ability, which could reward you through expressions of spiritual leadership, business analysis, marketing, artistic visions, and scientific research. Operating on spiritual side of your individuality can bring you to the great heights, and drop you off if you neglect your spiritual identity. You are always looking for an opportunity to investigate the unknown, to use and show your mental abilities, to find the purpose and meaning of life. You want to grow wise and to understand people and things. You need privacy to replenish your energy. You have a unique way of thinking, intuitive, reflective, absorbing.
✦ Sharif's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Sharif's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.