Clever Surname

63,895th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 7,836 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
Germany
Highest density in:
Germany

Clever Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from an official title. 'the cleaver,' i.e. mace-bearer. 'Clavia, a mace or club, as Strjeantia Gaviat is the Serjeancy of the Mace (Bailey). In a treaty agreed upon between the Mayor, Sheriffs, and Commonalty of Norwich in 1414, it was declared that 'the Mayor and twenty-four shall choose a common clerk, a coroner, two clavers, and eight constables; and the sixty common council shall choose a common speaker, one coroner, two clavers, and eight constables'; v.

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Clever Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Germany2,2621:35,5904,707
United States2,1381:169,53217,152
Nigeria1,9731:89,7836,263
Egypt4271:215,30615,336
Malawi1831:93,54711,397
France1371:484,83768,361
Tanzania1111:476,95132,497
Netherlands831:203,46028,061
Brazil621:3,452,81297,678
Uganda621:629,66632,895
Botswana611:35,8517,015
Zimbabwe431:359,02933,752
Mexico351:3,546,46324,778
Australia261:1,038,29659,744
Colombia231:2,077,13412,400
Switzerland211:391,09129,271
Canada171:2,167,388133,872
England151:3,714,537119,675
Argentina151:2,849,561122,961
Belgium121:958,05473,966
Thailand111:6,421,668407,040
Peru111:2,889,46628,985
Ghana91:3,002,29911,581
Austria91:946,15970,786
Burundi91:1,089,428846
India81:95,883,173728,828
Nicaragua81:752,6364,372
New Zealand71:646,90340,014
Indonesia51:26,449,839597,308
Ecuador41:3,976,46228,589
China41:341,830,39216,990
Kenya31:15,393,30077,493
Venezuela31:10,068,02660,591
Iran31:25,594,175224,183
Albania21:1,457,02824,967
Spain21:23,376,018128,922
Scotland21:2,676,90851,579
United Arab Emirates21:4,581,13693,443
Italy21:30,578,344160,757
Malaysia21:14,747,112316,340
Barbados11:287,4482,772
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
Chad11:13,592,19913,092
Armenia11:2,930,18022,770
Costa Rica11:4,780,06913,345
Togo11:7,247,76812,049
Algeria11:38,631,551130,422
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
South Africa11:54,177,704343,732
Taiwan11:23,444,74693,622
DR Congo11:73,879,570260,543
Sweden11:9,846,757347,448
Lebanon11:5,637,08332,436
Slovakia11:5,336,450140,422
Rwanda11:11,364,9785,947
Philippines11:101,238,223404,861
Finland11:5,496,70284,025
Iraq11:35,021,65431,813
Jordan11:8,842,43726,010
Ireland11:4,708,93929,543
Mauritius11:1,293,41716,552
Kuwait11:3,800,69427,187
Liberia11:4,408,53547,110
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England411:594,52130,269
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States5391:93,1709,542

The alternate forms: Cléver (2) are calculated separately.

Clever (56,239) may also be a first name.

Clever Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from an official title. 'the cleaver,' i.e. mace-bearer. 'Clavia, a mace or club, as Strjeantia Gaviat is the Serjeancy of the Mace (Bailey). In a treaty agreed upon between the Mayor, Sheriffs, and Commonalty of Norwich in 1414, it was declared that 'the Mayor and twenty-four shall choose a common clerk, a coroner, two clavers, and eight constables; and the sixty common council shall choose a common speaker, one coroner, two clavers, and eight constables'; v. Bromefield's Norfolk. Without doubt Cleaver is a corruption of Claver.

Simon le Claver, Norfolk, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Agnes le Claver, Norfolk, 1333: History of Norfolk.

John le Claver, Norfolk, 1333: ibid.

Walter le Claver, rector of All Saints, Norwich. ibid.

Henry le Claver. Rotuli Litterarum Clausarum in Turri Londinesi.

John le Clavier. Rotuli Normanniae in Turri Londinensi.

John Cleaver, rector of South Creak, Norfolk, 1669: History of Norfolk.

William Cleaver.

1653. Baptised — John, s. Samuell Cleaver: St. James, Clerkenwell.

1790. Married — Edward Cleaver and Sarah Dow: St. George, Hanover Square.

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

One who cleaves wood. In forest districts, lath-cleaving is still a distinct occupation.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

English, one who cleaves; a dweller on a cleave or cliff.

An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names (1857) by William Arthur

User-submitted Reference

(German) A toponymic surname. Either derived from the prepositional alias zum Cleve, used regionally in the early modern period, or directly from the demonymic adjective Clever or Klever. Both denote a person with origins in the city of Kleve, Germany.

- jpjenk44

Clever Last Name Facts

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

The surname Clever is borne by more people in Germany than any other country/territory. It may also be rendered as: Cléver. Click here for other potential spellings of this name.

How Common Is The Last Name Clever? popularity and diffusion

Clever is the 63,895th most commonly held last name internationally It is held by approximately 1 in 930,008 people. Clever occurs mostly in Africa, where 37 percent of Clever are found; 32 percent are found in Western Europe and 30 percent are found in Germanic Europe. It is also the 16,712th most frequently held first name worldwide, borne by 56,239 people.

This last name is most frequently used in Germany, where it is held by 2,262 people, or 1 in 35,590. In Germany it is mostly concentrated in: North Rhine-Westphalia, where 82 percent reside, Rhineland-Palatinate, where 5 percent reside and Bavaria, where 3 percent reside. Barring Germany it exists in 63 countries. It is also found in The United States, where 27 percent reside and Nigeria, where 25 percent reside.

Clever Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The frequency of Clever has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people who held the Clever last name rose 397 percent between 1880 and 2014 and in England it decreased 63 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Clever Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those bearing the Clever last name is chiefly Christian (100%) in Kenya.

In The United States those bearing the Clever last name are 34.53% more likely to be registered with the Democratic Party than the national average, with 87.76% being registered to vote for the political party.

The amount Clever earn in different countries varies greatly. In Peru they earn 115.11% more than the national average, earning S/. 41,699 per year; in Colombia they earn 14.84% less than the national average, earning $19,333,300 COP per year; in United States they earn 0.68% less than the national average, earning $42,857 USD per year and in Canada they earn 2.58% less than the national average, earning $48,403 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Cléver942/
Cleaver9215,003/
Clevert9249/
Cleever9230/
Cleiver922/
Clesver922/
Cleverr920/
Cleve912,150/
Clver915/
Schlever861/
Cleiverr861/
Klever833,353/
Cleave832,404/
Cleves832,274/
Cleeve83929/
Cliver83792/
Clewer83755/
Cleber83410/
Clevez8399/
Celver8318/
Clevet8314/
Cilver8314/
Cleive833/
Slever833/
Cleved833/
Cleveh831/
Cleyve831/
Clyver831/
Clevey830/
Clevir830/
Clevee830/
Cleverová801/
Schlevert800/
Cleaves773,288/
Chilver77717/
Cleeves77421/
Kliever77381/
Kleuver77335/
Clevett77317/
Clebert77311/
Kleaver77119/
Kleiver77117/
Sleaver7733/
Klevere7726/
Sleiver7716/
Sleever7715/
Kleever7712/
Cleiber7710/
Cleavey775/
Cliverd774/
Cleaved773/
Clyveer772/
Jleaver771/
Cleveas771/
Cliewer771/
Schlver771/
Kylever771/
Cleyber771/
Clévier771/
Chelver770/
Slevier770/
Cleavet770/
Cuilver770/
Cleaber770/
Cleveis770/
Schleivert751/
Clive732,446/
Kleve731,556/
Cluer73759/
Clevy73300/
Clewe7364/
Clebe7348/
Clyve7313/
Clève7313/
Clevé732/
Slver731/
Clves731/
Clevi731/
Cluee730/
Schlewer7165/
Schleber7135/
Cleavest7114/
Sleivert713/
Kleivier711/
Sellever711/
Kellever711/
Cleiveis711/
Clayveer711/
Kleveart710/
Schliver710/
Claivere710/
Kleavert710/
Gillever710/
Kleevert710/
Kleber6710,105/
Clewes671,504/
Klewer67871/
Kliver67574/
Klyver67371/
Clivet67276/
Kelver67216/
Klieve67215/
Sliver67205/
Kleive67186/
Cliber67116/
Clevis67105/
Kläver6793/
Kilver6744/
Kleverova6743/
Sleber6742/
Cliveţ6741/
Sølver6735/
Clives6733/
Cılvır6725/
Kløver6715/
Cléber6714/
Clevio679/
Cleibe678/
Klevge677/
Clbert677/
Klevje675/
Cleavy674/
Claive674/
Cliveț674/
Clèves674/
Schlivert673/
Jølver673/
Sllver672/
Schlitver672/
Cleava672/
Kleeve672/
Clayve672/
Clvett672/
Schleiber672/
Celber672/
Kleverová672/
Cleivy671/
Cleyva671/
Clouer671/
Cléves671/
Klûver671/
Qlbeer671/
Cleabe671/
Clebèr671/
Cleivi671/
Cleebe671/
Clessbert670/
Cleevy670/
Cluere670/
Cluher670/
Slettvert670/
Clivey670/
Clyber670/
Clewet670/

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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 Clever
  • 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