Clive Last Name Facts and Heraldry

Clive sits within the Cliff family of names, which has English roots. At root, the name means “Dweller near a steep descent or slope, or a steep rock”.

Spelling and variants

Records show Clive as one of the forms Cliff took over time. Other spellings include Cliffe and Kliff.

How common is Clive?

About 260 people in the United States were recorded as Clive in 2010, placing it 74,375 on the national list. That puts it among the top 100,000 US surnames.

Heraldry and the Clive name

A coat of arms belongs to a particular family line rather than to everyone named Clive, so the heraldry linked to Cliff is a starting point, not an automatic right.

Want more than a summary? See the Clive family name pack.