Clive is a boy name with a rare feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Clive means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Clive across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Clive has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Clive is a boy name of Old English origin meaning “cliff, slope”. An English surname from the Old English clif meaning cliff.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 3,336 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 221 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 38 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 804 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Clive per year, United States (1885 to 2025). United States peaked in 2016 (85/yr) · Ireland peaked in 1978 (49/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 1997 (20/yr) · Scotland peaked in 1974 (9/yr).
Clive is an uncommon baby name in the United States. It was most common in 2016, when it ranked #3,989 nationally (given to 91 babies that year).
Cliff · Cleve · Cleva · Clevia · Clevie · Clovia · Cleave · Cliffie
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