Cheryl

When I hear the name Cheryl I think of Cheryl Ladd, and that's probably a dead giveaway as to my general age group. Or, maybe not. According to one source that I have, Cheryl is an old diminutive form of the name Caroline. According to another source, Cheryl is a name that was invented in the 1920's. Behind the Name agrees that it was a 1920's invention, having possibly evolved from Cherie and stolen its spelling from Beryl. Since everyone seems to be guessing here, I'm going to suggest that it could just easily have been invented to rhyme with Carol--the Beryl spelling influence theory seems okay. According to a commenter on the Behind the Name site, though, at least one Cheryl was born in 1902. A few other internet sources--most of which I don't really trust--list the name as either English, or French. Those that say it's French give it the meaning "beloved," which suggests they're just tapping into the "Cherie" theory. I think we ought to just decide that "Cheryl" is derived from absolutely nothing and means "mystery." Popularity-wise, the name leaped out of nowhere in the 1930's, rose to a high point of 19th most popular name for girls in the 1950's, then started sinking steadily and very quickly in popularity, dropping out the top 1000 altogether after 1997. Sort of a shooting star of names, really. Will it make a comeback? On this one, your guess is as good as mine. It's not a classic, has no proven staying-power, and after all the Cheryls from the 1900's are gone and forgotten, the name could be forgotten as well. On the other hand, if a Cheryl became hugely famous, and in a good way, bringing good associations to the name that would last in public consciousness past the lifespan of that actual person, the name could see a resurgence in popularity. History shows us that it's even possible that a name like Cheryl could regain popularity through a fictional character (like Scarlett O'Hara,) or even a song (like Layla.) In any case, it's probable (or I think so anyway) that the name will be kept marginally alive for a while because of babies being named for their grandmothers or great-grandmothers. Only time will tell. Things I'd like to know for sure--or at least for probable: Where did Cheryl really come from? Why did it shoot to such popularity so fast, and why did it fall from favor so quickly afterwards (overuse, maybe.) This entire post (currently, at least) falls almost completely into the category of "notes to myself."