# Clyde (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/clyde/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | not recorded |
| Meaning | “the cleansing one” |
| Pronunciation | /klaɪd/, 1 syllable |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 148,926 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 144,994 / 3,932 (3% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 153, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Scottish Gaelic Cluaidh, the name of a river in Scotland, of uncertain origin. Possibly influenced by clut (“the cleansing one”).

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1958 | 14 | 3,252 |
| 1959 | 11 | 3,862 |
| 1960 | 13 | 3,537 |
| 1961 | 13 | 3,630 |
| 1963 | 6 | 6,004 |
| 1964 | 6 | 6,129 |
| 1965 | 8 | 4,904 |
| 1966 | 5 | 6,750 |
| 1968 | 6 | 6,379 |
| 1969 | 8 | 5,537 |
| 1970 | 6 | 7,219 |
| 1971 | 5 | 8,562 |
| 1974 | 6 | 7,872 |
| 1976 | 5 | 9,575 |
| 1977 | 7 | 7,703 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 154 | 1,160 |
| 2012 | 158 | 1,155 |
| 2013 | 196 | 1,001 |
| 2014 | 285 | 806 |
| 2015 | 288 | 803 |
| 2016 | 298 | 795 |
| 2017 | 350 | 704 |
| 2018 | 328 | 729 |
| 2019 | 299 | 779 |
| 2020 | 348 | 715 |
| 2021 | 352 | 731 |
| 2022 | 395 | 684 |
| 2023 | 368 | 721 |
| 2024 | 362 | 728 |
| 2025 | 350 | 743 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 9 | 2,194 |
| 2012 | 5 | 3,416 |
| 2013 | 8 | 2,403 |
| 2014 | 4 | 3,895 |
| 2015 | 6 | 3,004 |
| 2016 | 8 | 2,556 |
| 2017 | 4 | 3,996 |
| 2018 | 4 | 3,959 |
| 2019 | 7 | 2,728 |
| 2020 | 8 | 2,404 |
| 2021 | 6 | 3,017 |
| 2022 | 4 | 4,001 |
| 2023 | 5 | 3,523 |
| 2024 | 5 | 3,688 |
| 2025 | 3 | 5,137 |

## People named Clyde

- Clyde Tombaugh, American astronomer (1906–1997)
- Clyde Drexler, American basketball player (born 1962)
- Clyde Cowan, co-discoverer of the neutrino
- Clyde Geronimi, American animator and film director (1901-1989)
- Clyde Lovellette, American basketball player (1929–2016)
- Clyde McPhatter, American singer (1932–1972)
- Clyde Beatty, American circus performer (1903-1965)
- Clyde Cessna, American aircraft designer (1879-1954)
- Clyde Kusatsu, American actor
- Clyde Kluckhohn, American anthropologist (1905–1960)
- Clyde King, American rear admiral and rower (1898-1982)
- Clyde Tolson, associate director of the FBI (1900–1975)

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.