Charmaine

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Charmaine

Gender: Feminine
Language: English
Etymology:
The name Charmaine appears to be an invented name. It may be connected with the word “Charm” and or the ending “aine” from Lorraine. Or it may be derived from the popular names Charlene (or another form of Charles) or Chérie.

History:
Charmaine appears to have been invented for the character of the the French peasant girl (Charmaine de Cognac played by Dolores del Rio) in the 1926 silent film What Price Glory. The movie was based on a 1924 play of the same name by Maxwell Anderson.

In 1928 there was a musical short based on the film’s popular song “Charmaine” from that movie.

In 1952 director John Ford remade the film What Price Glory, which gave the name Charmaine (played by Corinne Calvet) another boost.

The song “Charmaine” was a perennial favorite of the mid-20th century, culminating in 1963 when the group The Bachelors recorded it.

Pronunciation: shar-mayn, charm-ayn.

Alternates: Charmain, Charmayne, Sharmain, Sharmaine, Sharmayne.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.011 % named Charmaine
0.001 % named Charmain
0.001 % named Sharmaine

Popularity of Charmaine:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1925: N/A
1926: N/A- The movie What Price Glory is released with a character and song named “Charmaine.”
1927: 850th most popular.
1928: 420th most popular.
1929: 653rd most popular.
1930: 622nd most popular.
1931: 687th most popular.
1932: 650th most popular.
1933: 728th most popular.
1934: 690th most popular.
1935: 729th most popular.
1936: 702nd most popular.
1937: 740th most popular.
1938: 784th most popular.
1939: 747th most popular.
1940: 707th most popular.
1941: 766th most popular.
1942: 746th most popular.
1943: 751st most popular.
1944: 738th most popular.
1945: 741st most popular.
1946: 804th most popular.
1947: 746th most popular.
1948: 749th most popular.
1949: 746th most popular.
1950: 696th most popular.
1951: 613th most popular.
1952: 331st most popular. - A remake of What Price Glory is released. - Peak!
1953: 417th most popular.
1954: 475th most popular.
1955: 491st most popular.
1956: 512th most popular.
1957: 520th most popular.
1958: 577th most popular.
1959: 546th most popular.
1960: 624th most popular.
1961: 580th most popular.
1962: 578th most popular.
1963: 600th most popular.
1964: 627th most popular.
1965: 626th most popular.
1966: 616th most popular.
1967: 643rd most popular.
1968: 722nd most popular.
1969: 664th most popular.
1970: 643rd most popular.
1971: 660th most popular.
1972: 566th most popular.
1973: 545th most popular.
1974: 587th most popular.
1975: 599th most popular.
1976: 537th most popular.
1977: 581st most popular.
1978: 689th most popular.
1979: 686th most popular.
1980: 694th most popular.
1981: 790th most popular.
1982: 800th most popular.
1983: 15th most popular.
1984: 841st most popular.
1985: 866th most popular.
1986: 884th most popular.
1987: 901st most popular.
1988: 836th most popular.
1989: 832nd most popular.
1990: 818th most popular.
1991: 778th most popular.
1992: 776th most popular.
1993: 999th most popular.
1994-2004: N/A

Selected Sources:
The Penguin Dictionary of First Names, Pickering, 1999
The Wordsworth Dictionary of First Names, Mcleod and Freedman, 1995

The Internet Movie Database - For information on the movies What Price Glory
The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880