Clayson
Son of the clay worker or potter.
Name Census estimates that about 218 living Americans carry the first name Clayson. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Clayson today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Clayson births was 2021 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Clayson. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
218
~ 1 in 1,572,268 Americans
Peak year
2021
14 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,057
Tracked since 1987
Popularity
Clayson: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Clayson from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 78 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Clayson remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Clayson by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Clayson during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Clayson
The name Clayson is believed to have its origins in the English language, dating back to the late 18th or early 19th century. It is a variant of the surname Clay, which itself is derived from the Old English word "claeg," meaning "clay" or "clayey soil." The addition of the suffix "-son" suggests a patronymic origin, indicating that Clayson was initially used as a surname to denote "son of Clay."
As a given name, Clayson is relatively rare and its earliest recorded use is difficult to pinpoint with certainty. However, some historical references suggest that it may have been used as a first name in certain regions of England during the 19th century, possibly among families with ties to the pottery or ceramic industries, where the association with clay would have been particularly relevant.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Clayson was Clayson Honywood (1801-1867), an English barrister and Member of Parliament for Kent. Another notable figure was Clayson Comyn (1826-1892), a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London and the surrounding areas.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Clayson was Clayson Merrick (1829-1901), a businessman and politician who served as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives in the late 19th century.
Other notable individuals with the name Clayson include:
1. Clayson Prentiss (1854-1919), an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the New York State Assembly.
2. Clayson Deburghgraeve (1873-1941), a Belgian artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraits.
3. Clayson Hendrickson (1884-1962), an American architect who designed several notable buildings in the Midwest, including the Flint Institute of Arts in Michigan.
4. Clayson Trumbull (1898-1976), an American journalist and author who wrote extensively on topics related to Native American history and culture.
5. Clayson Peavy (1921-2008), an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Peavy Corporation, a major lumber and building materials company.
It's important to note that while these individuals may have been notable in their respective fields, the name Clayson remains relatively uncommon, and its usage as a given name appears to have been limited primarily to certain regions and time periods.
People
Clayson + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Clayson as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Clayson: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Clayson?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 218 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Clayson going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,572,268 US residents.
Is Clayson a common name?
We classify Clayson as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 220 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Clayson most popular?
The single biggest year for Clayson was 2021, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Clayson is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Clayson a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Clayson in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.