Cleland Surname

38,652nd
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 13,607 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Northern Ireland

Cleland Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of Cleland,' a Scotch surname. Mr. Lower says the family were 'of that Ilk' in Lanarkshire in the time of Alexander III (Patronymica Britannica). The London Directory has such forms as M'Leland, M'Lellan, MacLellan, McLellan, Maclellan, and McLelland.

Read More About This Surname

Cleland Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States5,8141:62,3427,304
Ghana1,9401:13,9281,803
Australia1,4181:19,0382,635
Canada1,0991:33,5264,325
New Zealand7971:5,682935
England7891:70,6198,109
Scotland7691:6,9621,075
Northern Ireland3951:4,671903
South Africa1641:330,35230,898
Belize621:5,733966
Philippines551:1,840,695114,828
Argentina531:806,48053,420
Cameroon511:407,23734,925
Malta301:14,342837
Wales221:140,66110,115
Ireland191:247,8399,475
Sweden141:703,34052,204
Singapore131:423,66918,211
Zimbabwe131:1,187,55768,998
Papua New Guinea121:679,47678,554
Thailand101:7,063,834426,148
United Arab Emirates91:1,018,03036,884
Jamaica81:358,7438,527
Nigeria61:29,523,793355,097
Costa Rica61:796,6785,462
Mexico51:24,825,24158,251
France51:13,284,544357,392
China31:455,773,85521,925
Brazil31:71,358,111770,017
Italy21:30,578,344160,757
Chile21:8,808,23765,417
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Jersey11:99,2026,620
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
Indonesia11:132,249,194811,426
Iceland11:380,09011,096
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
East Timor11:1,215,928507
United States Virgin Islands11:110,3756,934
Austria11:8,515,435118,036
Egypt11:91,935,754132,737
Hong Kong11:7,335,48316,643
Cambodia11:15,487,14614,824
Switzerland11:8,212,915156,297
Equatorial Guinea11:1,135,674984
Spain11:46,752,036156,870
South Korea11:51,240,2568,015
Finland11:5,496,70284,025
Norway11:5,142,286129,201
Barbados11:287,4482,772
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland4111:10,7781,527
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Scotland6751:5,546824
England1241:196,57615,750
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States1,2601:39,8564,687

Cleland (615) may also be a first name.

Cleland Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of Cleland,' a Scotch surname. Mr. Lower says the family were 'of that Ilk' in Lanarkshire in the time of Alexander III (Patronymica Britannica). The London Directory has such forms as M'Leland, M'Lellan, MacLellan, McLellan, Maclellan, and McLelland. I have inserted Cleland and Clelland here as they have an English local appearance.

1748-0. John Cleland and Jane Strud- wick: Marriage Lic. (Faculty Office).

1800. Married — More Cleland and Lydia Capper: St. George, Hanover Square.

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

This surname is supposed to be derived from lands named Cleland or Kneland in the parish of Dalziel, Lanarkshire. The first of the family in record is said to be Alexander Kneland of that Ilk, temp. Alexander III. He married Margaret, daughter of Adam Wallace of Riccarton father of the Patriot, and Kneland, a follower of Wallace is mentioned several times by Henry the Minstrel (Wallace, III, 55,201, etc.). Anderson (Scot. Nat.) says there are several instances of Cleland of Cleland being called Knieland of that Ilk; thus among the persons who were delated for being art and part of the murder of Darnley were William Kneland of that Ilk and Arthur Kneland of Knowhobbilhill. William Kneland was burgess of Glasgow, 1464 (LCD., p. 182), Gavin Kneland. witness in Linlithgow, 1534 (Johnsoun), and Marjory Kneland appears in Fosh, parish of Monkland, 1546 (Campsie). James Kneland of hat Ilk made his will in 1547 (Comm. Rec. of Glasgow), Kneland of Foskane is mentioned in 1557, Gawin Cleland was denounced rebel in 1568 (RPC., I, p. 621), and William Kneland was burgess-freeman of Glasgow, 1574 (Burgesses). The seal of Andrew Cleland, one of the bailies of Edinburgh, 1612, reads S' Andree Kneland (Macdonald, 438). John Cleaveland or Cleland of Garrenshaugh appears in 1686 (RPC., 3. ser. XII, p. 69, 77), and James Cleiland was a merchant in Edinburgh, 1692 (Pitfirrane, 659). The name may be an early corruption of Cleveland. Roger de Cliveland was found in default for not attending an assize at Carlisle, 1278 (Bain, II, p. 34), and Osbern de Clivelond of Lanarkshire rendered homage, 1296 (ibid., p. 212). Clealand 1633, Cleilland 1678, Clayland 1604, Cliland 1687, Coleeland 1685, Kneband (error for Kneland) 1586.

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

(Celtic) for MacLellan(d, q.v. (English) Dweller at the Clay-Land [Old English clœg, clay + land]

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

The family were "of that Ilk," in co. Lanark, temp. Alexander III. and connected by marriage with Sir William Wallace. B.L.G.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

Local: From the lands of Cleland in Lanarkshire. James Cleland of that ilk was the associate of Wallace, and received from Robert Bruce several lands in the barony of Calder. He was the ancestor of William Cleland of that ilk, who by Jean his wife, daughter of William Lord Somerville, was progenitor of the Clelands of Cleland, Faskine, Monkland, and Cartness. The family arms are derived from the office they held of hereditary foresters to the Earls of Douglass.

The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames (1862) by Clifford Stanley Sims (1839-1896)

Cleland Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Cleland Come From? nationality or country of origin

The surname Cleland (Arabic: كليلاند) is more frequently found in The United States than any other country/territory. It may also occur as a variant:. For other potential spellings of this name click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Cleland? popularity and diffusion

This surname is the 38,652nd most widely held family name throughout the world, held by approximately 1 in 535,573 people. It occurs mostly in The Americas, where 49 percent of Cleland live; 48 percent live in North America and 48 percent live in Anglo-North America. It is also the 336,805th most frequently used given name world-wide It is held by 615 people.

The surname Cleland is most commonly occurring in The United States, where it is held by 5,814 people, or 1 in 62,342. In The United States Cleland is primarily concentrated in: California, where 13 percent are found, Michigan, where 8 percent are found and Ohio, where 7 percent are found. Apart from The United States this last name exists in 49 countries. It also occurs in Ghana, where 14 percent are found and Australia, where 10 percent are found.

Cleland Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of Cleland has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people carrying the Cleland last name increased 461 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it increased 636 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Scotland it increased 114 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Ireland it declined 95 percent between 1901 and 2014.

Cleland Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those holding the last name is primarily Presbyterian (57%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Cleland last name are 18.96% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 65.73% being registered to vote for the party.

The amount Cleland earn in different countries varies greatly. In South Africa they earn 98.49% more than the national average, earning R 471,696 per year; in United States they earn 10.03% more than the national average, earning $47,475 USD per year and in Canada they earn 8.79% more than the national average, earning $54,050 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

Cleland Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
Cleland in the Arabic language
كليلاندklyland-

Search for Another Surname

Cleland Reference & Research

McClellan FamilyTree DNA Group - A group collating DNA test results for those who bear the surname, includes results of DNA tests and discussions.

Kneeland Surname Pro FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

McClellan FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

The name statistics are still in development, sign up for information on more maps and data

By signing up to the mailing list you will only receive emails specifically about name reference on Forebears and your information will not be distributed to 3rd parties.

Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Cleland
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis