Shem

Shem is a male given name: 99% of people named Shem are men, and it is recorded as male in 1 of the 1 countries covered.

MaleMedium

Male 99%Female 1%

Verdict: Male
Male / female split: 99% male / 1% female
Confidence: Medium (8 to 63 weighted country observations)
Most common in: United States
US births since 1880: 640 male / 5 female
Data: nam_dict (GFDL) + US SSA
Updated: 2026-09-11

How to address Shem

When you do not know their gender for certain, the full name with no title is the safe choice: "Dear Shem," in English, "Guten Tag Shem," in German. Shem is a male given name: about 99% of people named Shem are men. A quick look at a profile confirms it for certain.

Ready-made greetings in six languages

English

Dear Shem,

German

Guten Tag Shem,

French

Bonjour Shem,

Spanish

Estimado/a Shem:

Chinese

Shem您好：

Japanese

Shem様

English

Hi Shem,

German

Hi Shem,

French

Salut Shem,

Spanish

Hola Shem,

Chinese

Shem你好：

Japanese

Shemさん

Greeting generator

This is a statistical estimate, not a statement about the gender, identity or correct form of address of any particular person.

Country breakdown

Gender of the name Shem by country (nam_dict, 55 country columns)
Country	How common	Usually	Male share
United States	uncommon	man's name	99%

United States birth data

640 male · 5 female · 645 births recorded

Male 99%Female 1%

Since 1980: 100% male.

Frequently asked questions

Is Shem a male or female name?

Shem is a male given name: 99% of people named Shem are men, and it is recorded as male in 1 of the 1 countries covered.

How do I address Shem in an email?

Is Shem a unisex name?

Shem is not a unisex name: 99% of people named Shem are men. Shem leans strongly male overall.

Sources

Gender by country: nam_dict, the c't first-names dictionary by Joerg Michael, roughly 44,000 names across 55 countries, licensed GFDL. US frequencies: United States Social Security Administration baby-name data, public domain. Method: how we classify names. Full dataset: data & licences. Data built 2026-09-11.

Cite this page

DearWho, "Is Shem a male or female name?", https://dearwho.vercel.app/name/shem (accessed 2026-09-11). Data: nam_dict (J. Michael, GFDL) and US SSA, built 2026-09-11.

BibTeX

@misc{dearwho_shem,
  title  = {Is Shem a male or female name?},
  author = {{DearWho}},
  year   = {2026},
  url    = {https://dearwho.vercel.app/name/shem},
  note   = {Data: nam_dict (GFDL), US SSA public domain}
}