girl's name
Claudette
klaw-DET
- Origin French
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 9
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 66,581
Ireland
#587
1977 births
Claudette means little lame one, and it is an uncomplimentary name that a Roman dynasty made prestigious — the Claudii held the emperorship, and the byname's original sense stopped mattering. Emperor Claudius carried both the limp and the name.
- Claudette is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1946, when 2,175 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade in France.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Claudette over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2000s. The striped bar is the 2000s, still in progress — it covers 2000 to 2002, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 145 |
| 1910s | 470 |
| 1920s | 3,320 |
| 1930s | 13,570 |
| 1940s | 17,545 |
| 1950s | 10,025 |
| 1960s | 2,295 |
| 1970s | 275 |
| 1980s | 50 |
| 1990s | 30 |
| 2000s (to 2002) | 5 |
What Claudette means
Claudette means little lame one. The Latin claudus means lame or limping, and the French diminutive softens a byname that began as a plain physical description.
Where Claudette comes from
Claudette is a French diminutive of Claude, from the Roman family name Claudius, built on claudus — lame. Uncomplimentary bynames were ordinary in Rome, and this one lost its sting once the Claudii became one of the two families of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Emperor Claudius had a limp and a stammer, which his family treated as a disqualification and which may be why he survived long enough to rule.
Claudette in use
Claudette peaked in France in 1946, when 2,175 babies were registered, and our data marks it stable rather than falling. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 10635th in the United States on 9 births, across 66,581 lifetime births. Claudette Colvin refused to give up a bus seat in Montgomery nine months before Rosa Parks did.
How popular is Claudette?
In 2002, Claudette was given to 5 babies in France. It is a rare choice.
Where Claudette is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Claudette
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Claudette also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Claudette over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Claudette in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Claudette
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Claudette — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Claudette
What does the name Claudette mean?
Little lame one — the Latin claudus, with a French diminutive.
Why would a family use it?
The Claudii became imperial, and the byname's original sense stopped mattering.
Who was Claudette Colvin?
She refused to give up a bus seat in Montgomery nine months before Rosa Parks.
How popular is Claudette?
It charts in one of our six markets, at 10635th in the United States.
Is Claudette a girl's or a boy's name?
Claudette is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Claudette?
Claudette has 2 syllables.
Is Claudette a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Claudette currently ranks #10,635 in France. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.