2000
#12,058
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,375
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.88
Rare Last name
Cliff
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a cliff or steep slope.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,441 Americans carry the last name Cliff. That puts it at #13,624 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 140,416 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cliff surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Cliff with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.4K
1 in 140,416
Census rank
#13,624
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,129 bearers of the surname Cliff in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13624th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cliff, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.5%. The next largest groups are Black (11.8%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cliff
The surname CLIFF is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word "clif," meaning a steep rock or high bank. It likely originated as a topographic name, given to someone who lived near or on a cliff. The name is first recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Cliue" and "Cliva."
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Robert de Cliff, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166. Another early record is of William Clyff, who was listed in the Lancashire Assize Rolls of 1246.
The name CLIFF may also have derived from place names containing the word "cliff," such as Cliff Pypard in Wiltshire or Cliff Hill in Shropshire. These place names themselves were descriptive of the local topography.
In the 13th century, the name appeared as "de la Clyf" and "atte Clyve," indicating the person lived near or on a cliff. Over time, the prefixes "de la" and "atte" were dropped, leaving just the surname CLIFF.
Notable individuals with the surname CLIFF include Adam de Cliff, a 13th-century English landowner and nobleman mentioned in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1214. John Cliff (c. 1585-1623) was an English Puritan clergyman and author of several theological works.
In the 17th century, there was Samuel Cliff (1623-1692), an English Puritan minister and one of the founders of the Old Meeting House in Birmingham. Edward Cliff (1791-1873) was a British naval officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars and later became a diplomat.
Another prominent bearer of the name was William Cliff (1824-1896), an English businessman and Conservative politician who served as Mayor of Bradford and Member of Parliament for the borough.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cliff
Among Census respondents with the surname Cliff, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.5%. The next largest groups are Black (11.8%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Cliff bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Cliff surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.5% · 1,649
- Black or African American11.8% · 252
- Two or more races4.4% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 82
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 33
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 19
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cliff
Cliff appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#12,856
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,395
+20 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.81
Rank movement Down 798 places
2020
#13,624
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,129
-266 bearers (-11.1%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 768 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,058 | 2,375 | 0.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,856 | 2,395 | 0.81 | +20 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 798 places |
| 2020 | #13,624 | 2,129 | 0.71 | -266 bearers (-11.1%) | Down 768 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Cliff surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #12,856 | #13,624 | -6.0% |
| Count | 2,395 | 2,129 | -11.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.81 | 0.71 | -12.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cliff bearers went from 2,395 to 2,129 (-11.1% change). The surname moved down 768 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,856 to #13,624.
FAQ
Cliff surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cliff?
Name Census estimates that about 2,441 living Americans carry the surname Cliff. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 140,416 residents.
How common is Cliff?
Cliff ranks #13,624 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,129 people with the surname Cliff. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,441), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Cliff.
Has Cliff become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cliff went from 2,395 recorded bearers to 2,129. That is a decrease of 266 (-11.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,856 to #13,624.
What does the Census say about the background of Cliff?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cliff, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.5%. The next largest groups are Black (11.8%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Cliff in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.5% (1,649 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cliff appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.5%), Black (11.8%), Two or More Races (4.4%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Cliff (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Cliff mean?
An English toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a cliff or steep slope. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Cliff (0.71 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Cliff?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.