Chimene

Meaning & origin

Chimene is an extremely rare Spanish variant of Jimena, the name of El Cid's wife in the medieval Spanish epic. It first appeared on the U.S. Social Security list in 1962, the year of its first recorded birth, and peaked in 1970 with a rank below the top 1000. Since then, its usage has been sparse, with no recorded births in 2025 and a trajectory that remains stable at near-zero. The name has not been associated with any particular U.S. state or cultural group, reflecting its status as a rare import from the Spanish-speaking world. Though it never broke into the top 1000, its connection to Spanish literature and history gives it a distinctive cultural weight for parents seeking an uncommon name with Iberian roots.

Chimene is a Spanish variant of Jimena, itself the feminine form of Jimeno, a Basque or Visigothic name of debated meaning. It gained prominence through the medieval epic 'Cantar de Mio Cid,' where Chimene (spelled Ximena or Jimena) is the wife of the hero El Cid. The name has been used in Spain and Latin America, though it remains rare in the United States, where it first appeared on the Social Security list in 1962.