Clovie
A feminine name derived from the English word "clover", symbolizing luck and fortune.
Name Census estimates that about 1 living Americans carry the first name Clovie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Clovie today is around 70 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Clovie births was 1916 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Clovie. 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 Clovie is about 70 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Clovies were born before 1966.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Clovie. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
1
~ 1 in 342,754,338 Americans
Peak year
1916
8 babies that year
Average age
70
years old
1931 SSA rank
#3,959
Tracked since 1901
Popularity
Clovie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Clovie from the 1900s through to the 1930s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 11 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Clovie remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Clovie 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 Clovie 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 Clovie
The name Clovie is believed to have originated from the Old English word "clover," which was derived from the Proto-Germanic word "klovoraz." This word referred to the three-leaved clover plant, which was considered lucky and auspicious in many ancient cultures.
The earliest known usage of the name Clovie dates back to the 9th century, when it was recorded as a personal name in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle. This historical record suggests that the name was likely used among the Anglo-Saxon people in what is now England.
In the Middle Ages, the name Clovie was occasionally mentioned in religious texts and literature, often associated with characters or individuals with a connection to nature or the natural world. For example, in the 14th-century poem "The Flower and the Leaf" by Geoffrey Chaucer, a character named Clovie is described as a personification of the clover plant.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Clovie was Clovie of Wessex, a nun who lived in the 10th century and was known for her work in establishing a convent and promoting education for women. Another notable figure was Clovie the Herbalist, a 13th-century healer and apothecary who was renowned for her extensive knowledge of medicinal plants, including the clover.
In the 16th century, a French explorer named Clovie Dupont (1542-1610) gained fame for his expeditions to the Americas and his detailed accounts of the flora and fauna he encountered. His writings contributed significantly to the field of natural history during the Age of Exploration.
During the Renaissance, the name Clovie was occasionally used by artists and poets, reflecting the appreciation for nature and symbolism in art and literature. One such individual was Clovie Della Porta (1535-1615), an Italian artist and writer who was known for her intricate botanical illustrations and her treatise on the symbolic meanings of plants.
While the name Clovie has never been extremely common, it has been used throughout history by individuals from various backgrounds, often with a connection to nature, herbalism, or exploration. The name's origins and associations with the clover plant have given it a certain charm and symbolism that has endured over the centuries.
People
Clovie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Clovie 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
Clovie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Clovie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Clovie 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 342,754,338 US residents.
Is Clovie a common name?
We classify Clovie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 3.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 30 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Clovie most popular?
The single biggest year for Clovie was 1916, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Clovie is about 70 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 Clovie in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Clovie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Clovie in the SSA data are female. 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 Clovie still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Clovie 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 Clovie 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 share the name Clovie?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.