Clim
A non-traditional name that could mean "one who climbs or ascends."
Name Census estimates that about 4 living Americans carry the first name Clim. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Clim today is around 78 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Clim births was 1914 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Clim. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Clim is about 78 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Clims were born before 1958.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Clim. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
4
~ 1 in 85,688,585 Americans
Peak year
1914
5 babies that year
Average age
78
years old
1949 SSA rank
#3,781
Tracked since 1914
Popularity
Clim: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Clim from the 1910s through to the 1940s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 10 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Clim remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Clim 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 Clim 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 Clim
The name Clim is an unusual and relatively obscure given name with origins that are difficult to trace definitively. Some language experts speculate that it may have derived from a Germanic root word relating to climbing or ascending, potentially referencing a physical characteristic or occupation. Others believe it could have evolved from a shortened form of the Latin name Climacus, meaning "of the ladder."
The earliest known historical references to the name Clim can be found in medieval records from parts of central Europe, though its usage was likely quite limited even during that era. One of the first documented individuals with this name was Clim of Cologne, a 12th century German monk and scribe known for his meticulous transcription work.
A few centuries later, in the late 15th century, a Clim Jansen was recorded as a prominent merchant and trader in the Hanseatic city of Lübeck. He is believed to have been one of the wealthier citizens of the city at that time, though little else is known about his life or legacy.
Moving into the 16th century, a Clim Schultheiss gained some notoriety as a prolific writer and pamphleteer during the Protestant Reformation. Born in 1522 in Strasbourg, his polemical works often criticized the Catholic Church and its practices, though most of his writings have been lost to history.
The 17th century saw the birth of Clim van Riebeeck in 1619, a Dutch navigator and colonial administrator who founded the first European settlement in what is now Cape Town, South Africa. He served as the governor of the Cape Colony from 1652 to 1662 and played a pivotal role in establishing Dutch control over the region.
Finally, in the 19th century, a Clim Bredenkamp (1847-1923) was a Boer military leader and politician who fought in the First and Second Boer Wars against British forces. He later served as a member of the Volksraad, the parliamentary body of the South African Republic.
While the name Clim has never been widespread or common, these examples demonstrate its sporadic usage throughout various historical periods and geographic regions, primarily within European contexts. However, the precise origins and meanings behind this unique moniker remain somewhat shrouded in mystery.
People
Clim + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Clim 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
Clim: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Clim?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 4 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Clim 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 85,688,585 US residents.
Is Clim a common name?
We classify Clim as "Very Rare". It ranks above 6.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 25 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Clim most popular?
The single biggest year for Clim was 1914, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Clim is about 78 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Clim in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Clim a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Clim 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.
Is Clim still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Clim in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Clim can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Clim?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Clim, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.