Clark
Clark was the 377th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 837 babies. Its best year was 1881, when it ranked 176th; the most babies were born in 1961 (879). Over the last ten years it has moved down 5 places. More babies were named Clark in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning clerk, scholar · English, Old English, Latin
Say it KLARK /klɑrk/
- Rank in 2025
- #377 boys, up 10 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 837boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1961879 babies
- Total since 1880
- 51,205babies recorded
What does the name Clark mean?
Clark is an English and Scottish occupational surname for a clerk: a cleric, scribe or secretary, someone who could read and write. Wiktionary derives it from Old English clerc, "clergyman, learned man", ultimately from Latin clericus and Greek klērikos, "belonging to the clergy". Actor Clark Gable and Superman's Clark Kent made it familiar as a first name.
clerc (Old English, “clergyman, scholar”)clericus (Latin, “cleric”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Clarke, Clerk.
See also: English names, names from occupations.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Clark', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'clark', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
Clark popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 354 since 1918, 18 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #377 | 837 |
| 2020 | #387 | 793 |
| 2010 | #695 | 335 |
| 2000 | #761 | 218 |
| 1990 | #536 | 342 |
| 1980 | #533 | 261 |
| 1970 | #418 | 381 |
| 1960 | #317 | 608 |
| 1950 | #262 | 624 |
| 1940 | #272 | 427 |
| 1930 | #359 | 255 |
| 1920 | #333 | 308 |
| 1910 | #292 | 71 |
| 1900 | #230 | 75 |
| 1890 | #233 | 51 |
| 1880 | #237 | 49 |
How popular is Clark, counting every spelling?
Clark is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #388 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #377 for Clark on its own. Together these spellings went to 842 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Clark | 837 | #377 | 3,795 |
| Klark | 5 | #13,077 | 33 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Clark?
837 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Clark (0.23 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Clark born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 10 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Clark.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Clark?
About 33,800 people born in the US named Clark are alive today, with a median age of 37; half are between 11 and 64. That makes Clark mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Clark by state
How common Clark was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Idaho (3.0×), Utah (3.0×), Oregon (2.1×), Iowa (1.8×), Missouri (1.7×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Nevada, New Jersey, North Dakota.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Clark: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Clark, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Clark · Sibling names for Clark
Questions about the name Clark
What does Clark mean?
Clark means “clerk, scholar” (English, Old English, Latin origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Clark?
Clark was the 377th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 837 babies. Its best year was 1881, when it ranked 176th; the most babies were born in 1961 (879). Over the last ten years it has moved down 5 places. More babies were named Clark in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Clark a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Clark in the US.
Where is Clark most popular?
In 2021–2025, Clark was most common in Idaho (1.32 per 1,000 boys), followed by Utah and Montana.