boy's name
Clifton
KLIF-ten
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 7
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 70,781
Clifton means the settlement by the cliff, and it is the same first element as Clifford — one describes a ford below the cliff and the other the farm on top of it. Its strongest market is the United States, at 1916th.
- Clifton is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1975, when 1,224 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 40,432 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Clifton over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 456 |
| 1890s | 815 |
| 1900s | 1,202 |
| 1910s | 6,175 |
| 1920s | 8,810 |
| 1930s | 6,895 |
| 1940s | 8,202 |
| 1950s | 9,900 |
| 1960s | 7,664 |
| 1970s | 7,889 |
| 1980s | 6,430 |
| 1990s | 2,941 |
| 2000s | 1,647 |
| 2010s | 1,096 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 563 |
What Clifton means
Clifton means the settlement on or near a cliff. The Old English joins clif, a cliff or steep bank, to tun, an enclosure or farmstead, describing terrain and holding together.
Where Clifton comes from
Clifton is an English place name from clif, a cliff or steep bank, joined to tun — a farmstead or enclosure. It pairs neatly with Clifford, which is the same clif joined to a ford: one names the crossing below the high ground and the other the settlement on it. There are Cliftons across England, and the Clifton Suspension Bridge crosses the Avon Gorge at the one in Bristol. Its use as a given name is nineteenth-century American.
Clifton in use
Clifton peaked in the United States in 1975, when 1,224 babies were registered, and our data marks it stable rather than falling. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 1,916th in the United States on 82 births, across 70,781 lifetime births. Clifford, its sister name, is written up separately and holds 190,848 lifetime births.
How popular is Clifton?
In 2025, Clifton was given to 82 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Clifton is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Clifton
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Clifton also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Clifton over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Clifton
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Clifton 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 Clifton
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Clifton — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Clifton
What does the name Clifton mean?
The settlement by the cliff — clif joined to tun, a farmstead.
Is Clifton related to Clifford?
Same first element. Clifford is the ford below the cliff; Clifton is the settlement on it.
Is Cliff short for both?
Yes — it serves Clifton and Clifford alike.
How popular is Clifton?
1916th in the United States, and our data marks it stable.
Is Clifton a girl's or a boy's name?
Clifton is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Clifton?
Clifton has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Clifton?
Clifton is usually shortened to Cliff.
Is Clifton a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Clifton currently ranks #1,916 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.