2000
#64,385
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 289
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.11
Very Rare Last name
Clunie
A Scottish surname referring to a person from Cluny in Aberdeenshire.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 382 Americans carry the last name Clunie. That puts it at #64,521 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.11 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 897,263 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Clunie 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 Clunie with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
382
1 in 897,263
Census rank
#64,521
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
333
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 333 bearers of the surname Clunie in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.11 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 64521st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Clunie, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.5%. The next largest groups are Black (33.0%) and Hispanic (6.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Clunie
The surname Clunie is of Scottish origin, deriving from the Gaelic term "cluain," meaning "meadow" or "pasture." It is believed to have originated in the Perthshire region of Scotland, particularly around the village of Clunie.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Clunie name can be found in the Scottish Ragman Rolls of 1296, which listed individuals who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England during his invasion of Scotland. Among those listed was Thome de Clony, a probable early spelling variation of the surname.
The Clunie family held lands in the parish of Clunie, situated near the town of Blairgowrie in Perthshire. This area was once part of the ancient Kingdom of Fortrenn, and the name Clunie likely derived from the description of the local landscape.
In the 16th century, records show a John Clunie who was a prominent landowner and burgess (a member of the medieval town guild) in the nearby town of Perth. His son, also named John Clunie, became a respected clergyman and served as the minister of the parish of Borthwick in Midlothian.
Another notable figure bearing the Clunie surname was Sir Alexander Clunie, a Scottish merchant and diplomat who lived in the 17th century. He served as a representative of the Scottish Crown in various European courts and played a crucial role in negotiating trade agreements.
In the literary realm, John Clunie, born in 1743, was a Scottish poet and songwriter who penned several works celebrating the beauty of the Scottish Highlands and the traditional way of life.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, many individuals with the Clunie surname migrated from Scotland to other parts of the British Empire, including North America and Australia, contributing to the spread and diversification of the name worldwide.
It is worth noting that the Clunie surname has also been associated with several place names in Scotland, such as Clunie Castle, a ruined 16th-century castle located near the village of Clunie, and Clunie Loch, a small loch in the same area.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Clunie
Among Census respondents with the surname Clunie, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.5%. The next largest groups are Black (33.0%) and Hispanic (6.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Clunie 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 Clunie surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White56.5% · 188
- Black or African American33.0% · 110
- Hispanic or Latino6.6% · 22
- Two or more races2.7% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Clunie
Clunie 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
#56,972
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 358
+69 bearers (+23.9%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Up 7,413 places
2020
#64,521
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 333
-25 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Down 7,549 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #64,385 | 289 | 0.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #56,972 | 358 | 0.12 | +69 bearers (+23.9%) | Up 7,413 places |
| 2020 | #64,521 | 333 | 0.11 | -25 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 7,549 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 Clunie 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 | #56,972 | #64,521 | -13.3% |
| Count | 358 | 333 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.12 | 0.11 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Clunie bearers went from 358 to 333 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 7,549 positions in the national ranking, going from #56,972 to #64,521.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Clunie
FAQ
Clunie surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Clunie?
Name Census estimates that about 382 living Americans carry the surname Clunie. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 897,263 residents.
How common is Clunie?
Clunie ranks #64,521 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.11 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 333 people with the surname Clunie. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (382), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.11 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.11 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Clunie.
Has Clunie become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Clunie went from 358 recorded bearers to 333. That is a decrease of 25 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #56,972 to #64,521.
What does the Census say about the background of Clunie?
Among Census respondents with the surname Clunie, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.5%. The next largest groups are Black (33.0%) and Hispanic (6.6%). 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 Clunie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.5% (188 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Clunie appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (56.5%), Black (33.0%), Hispanic (6.6%). 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 Clunie (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 Clunie mean?
A Scottish surname referring to a person from Cluny in Aberdeenshire. 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 Clunie (0.11 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 Clunie?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.