Clive

English
"lives near a high cliff"

Clive Origin and Meaning

The name Clive is a boy's name of English origin meaning "lives near a high cliff".

Clive started life as a surname for someone who lived near a cliff, making it a secret outdoorsy name.

Its use as a first name began in honor of Robert Clive (aka Clive of India), an eighteenth-century British statesman and military leader, essentially the founder of British India — which in the past has given the name something of a gung-ho, mustachioed image. In England today it's a grandpa name, most common on men born in the 1940s, 50s and 60s, and would be a surprising (pleasantly counter-cultural!) choice for a baby.

In the States, Clive has never been widely used, though there are signs that more parents are starting to consider it. It has been given to more boys in the last decade than ever before, though still under one hundred a year. If you're looking for a short, no-nonsense nature name that everyone knows but hardly anyone's using, Clive could be a great option.

Famous Clives helping to shake off the colonial image include British silver fox actor Clive Owen; Narnia author Clive Staples Lewis; and most recently Clive Rosfield, the hero of Final Fantasy XVI.

# 993 in the US

Clive Rank in US Top 1000

# 590 on Nameberry

Clive Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Clive Popularity

Famous People Named Clive

  • Clive Owen
    English actor
  • Clive Staples "C.S." Lewis
    Northern Irish novelist
  • Clive William John Granger
    Welsh economist and Nobel Prize winner
  • Clive Eric Cussler
    American novelist
  • Clive Barker
    English novelist
  • Clive Davis
    American record producer and executive
  • (Arthur) Clive Heward Bell
    English art critic
  • Clive Ronald Burr
    drummer of English band Iron Maiden
  • Clive Rush
    American NFL football coach
  • Clive Robert Benjamin Dunn
    English actor
  • Clive James Standen
    English actor
  • Clive John "Benji" Webbe
    British singer of bands Skindred and Dub War
  • Robert Clive
    1st Baron Clive aka Clive of India, British officer, founder of the East India Company
  • Clive Swift
    English actor & songwriter
  • Clive Hornby
    English actor and musician

Clive in Pop Culture

  • Clive Newcombe
    character in William Thackeray's "The Newcombes"
  • Clive O'Brian
    character in the video game Resident Evil: Revelations
  • Clive Yorkin
    character on TV's "The Flash"
  • Clive Babineaux
    character on Tv show "iZombie"
  • Clive Dove
    character in the game "Professor Layton and the Lost Future"
  • Clive
    Invisible friend of Garfield the cat in some Garfield strips