Cherice
A feminine name of French origin meaning "beloved".
Name Census estimates that about 1,038 living Americans carry the first name Cherice. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cherice today is around 46 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cherice births was 1975 (53 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cherice. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Cherice with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.0K
~ 1 in 330,206 Americans
Peak year
1975
53 babies that year
Average age
46
years old
2004 SSA rank
#14,545
Tracked since 1955
Census
Cherice in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 977 people with the first name Cherice, which placed it at #12,661 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#12,661
National first-name rank
People counted
977
977 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.3
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
50.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cherice
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cherice is Black at 50.7%. The next largest groups are White (35.8%) and Hispanic (6.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Cherice described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Cherice at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American50.7% · 495
- White35.8% · 350
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 66
- Two or more races4.3% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 11
Popularity
Cherice: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cherice from the 1950s through to the 2000s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 400 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cherice by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Cherice during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cherices live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, New York, Illinois recorded the most babies named Cherice, while Virginia, Missouri, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 31 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cherice
The name Cherice is believed to have its origins in the French language, derived from the Old French word "cherir," which means "to cherish" or "to hold dear." This name first gained popularity during the Middle Ages in France and surrounding regions.
Cherice is a feminine form of the masculine name Chéri, which was initially used as a term of endearment or a pet name for a loved one. The name's association with affection and cherishing likely contributed to its adoption as a given name for girls.
While there are no known historical references to the name Cherice in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it is possible that the name was used informally or within certain communities before becoming more widely documented.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cherice can be found in the 17th century French play "Le Bourgeois Gentilhomme" by Molière, where a character bears this name. However, it is uncertain whether this was a fictional character or a real person the playwright had in mind.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Cherice. One such figure was Cherice Booth (1938-2018), an American actress known for her roles in television shows like "Room 222" and "The Jeffersons." Another notable Cherice was Cherice Baptiste (born 1977), a former professional basketball player who represented the British Virgin Islands in international competitions.
In the literary world, Cherice Graves (born 1947) is an African American author and educator, known for her works exploring themes of race, identity, and cultural heritage. Cherice Mastin (born 1992) is a contemporary American singer and songwriter who has released several albums and gained recognition in the music industry.
Lastly, Cherice Moninger (born 1976) is an American entrepreneur and businesswoman who co-founded the successful online clothing retailer Womensfere, catering to plus-size fashion.
These individuals, spanning various fields and time periods, have helped to popularize and maintain the name Cherice throughout history, each contributing to its unique legacy and cultural significance.
People
Cherice + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cherice as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cherice: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cherice?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,038 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cherice going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 330,206 US residents.
Is Cherice a common name?
We classify Cherice as "Rare". It ranks above 90.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,137 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cherice most popular?
The single biggest year for Cherice was 1975, when 53 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cherice is about 46 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cherice in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 977 people with the name Cherice, or 0.32 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #12,661 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Cherice in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Cherice?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cherice appears almost entirely female. Of the 978 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Cherice?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cherice is Black at 50.7%. The next largest groups are White (35.8%) and Hispanic (6.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Cherice most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Cherice in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.7% (495 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Cherice in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cherice a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cherice in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Cherice still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cherice in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Cherice can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people share the name Cherice?
You can see how many Americans are named Cherice on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.