Declining since 2007, #8,362 for girls today.
Popularity of Sherly since 1952
Babies named Sherly per year in U.S. Social Security records.
Data table (by decade)
| Decade | Girls |
|---|---|
| 1950s | 50 |
| 1960s | 102 |
| 1970s | 78 |
| 1980s | 100 |
| 1990s | 125 |
| 2000s | 316 |
| 2010s | 182 |
| 2020s | 109 |
Meaning & origin
Sherly is a modern English name that first appeared on U.S. records in 1952. It reached its peak rank of 8,362 in 2008, with a 1-in-133,939 frequency in 2025. The name is on a downward trajectory, declining in usage since 2007. It is a respelling of more established names like Shirley and Cheryl, which have deeper roots in English surname traditions. Despite its modest popularity, Sherly reflects the late-20th-century trend of creating phonetically distinct variants of familiar names.
Sherly is a modern English variant, likely formed as a respelling of Shirley or a shortened form of Cheryl. Shirley derives from an English surname and place name meaning 'bright meadow' from Old English scīr 'bright' + lēah 'clearing, meadow'. Cheryl emerged in the 20th century, possibly influenced by Cherry and Beryl. Sherly has been in sporadic use in the United States since the 1950s, peaking in the 2000s.
Nicknames & variants
Nicknames: Sher, Sheri, Lee
Sibling names for Sherly
Names that share Sherly's style, for a brother or sister.
