Shirell
A baby girl's name of unknown origin and uncertain meaning.
Name Census estimates that about 289 living Americans carry the first name Shirell. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Shirell today is around 51 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shirell births was 1963 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shirell. 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.
People living today
289
~ 1 in 1,186,001 Americans
Peak year
1963
21 babies that year
Average age
51
years old
1995 SSA rank
#9,438
Tracked since 1961
Census
Shirell in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 309 people with the first name Shirell, which placed it at #28,877 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
#28,877
National first-name rank
People counted
309
309 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
74.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shirell
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shirell is Black at 74.8%. The next largest groups are White (16.8%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Shirell 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 Shirell at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American74.8% · 231
- White16.8% · 52
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 10
- Two or more races2.6% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 2
Popularity
Shirell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Shirell from the 1960s through to the 1990s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 122 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shirell 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 Shirell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Shirells live
Origin
Meaning and history of Shirell
The name Shirell finds its roots in the ancient Hebrew language. It is believed to have originated as a variation of the Hebrew name Shirley, which means "bright meadow" or "field of life." The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the biblical era, when it was used as a feminine name among the ancient Israelites.
One of the earliest documented references to the name Shirell can be found in the Book of Ruth, a sacred text in the Hebrew Bible. In this text, the name is mentioned as Shirali, which is believed to be a variant of Shirell. This suggests that the name has been in use for over two millennia.
Throughout history, the name Shirell has been borne by several notable individuals. One of the most prominent figures was Shirell of Antioch, a Christian martyr who lived in the 4th century AD. She was executed for her faith during the persecution of Christians under the Roman Emperor Diocletian.
Another historical figure with the name Shirell was Shirell of Aquitaine, a Frankish noblewoman who lived in the 9th century. She was a prominent figure in the court of Charlemagne and played a significant role in the cultural and intellectual life of the Carolingian Renaissance.
In the 12th century, Shirell of Apulia was a notable Italian poet and philosopher. She was known for her contributions to the literary and intellectual circles of the time and is considered one of the first female writers in the Italian vernacular.
The name Shirell also appears in the annals of English history. In the 15th century, Shirell Plantagenet was a member of the royal House of Plantagenet and a descendant of King Edward III. She was a prominent figure during the Wars of the Roses, a series of civil wars fought between the Houses of Lancaster and York.
Another notable bearer of the name was Shirell Browne, an Irish writer and playwright who lived in the 17th century. She was known for her satirical works and played a significant role in the literary culture of her time.
While the name Shirell has ancient roots and a rich historical legacy, it has remained relatively uncommon throughout the centuries. However, its unique sound and meaning have continued to captivate individuals across various cultures and time periods.
People
Shirell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shirell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Shirell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shirell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 289 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shirell 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 1,186,001 US residents.
Is Shirell a common name?
We classify Shirell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 78.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 325 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shirell most popular?
The single biggest year for Shirell was 1963, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shirell is about 51 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Shirell in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 309 people with the name Shirell, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #28,877 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 Shirell 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 Shirell?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Shirell leans strongly female. 301 people counted with this name were female (96.2%), compared with 12 male bearers (3.8%). 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 Shirell?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Shirell is Black at 74.8%. The next largest groups are White (16.8%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Shirell most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Shirell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.8% (231 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 Shirell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shirell a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shirell 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 Shirell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shirell 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 Shirell 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 common is the name Shirell?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Shirell on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.