Claude
KLOHD
A name with Roman roots that came to suggest distinction and nobility, especially in French use.
Meaning
Claude comes from the Roman name Claudius, a form associated with the Latin family name Claudius. In the excerpted 19th-century source, it is also connected to an older Germanic root meaning “celebrated,” “distinguished,” or “illustrious,” reflecting the name’s prestige in historical use. In French tradition it appears in both masculine and feminine use, though it is especially familiar as a masculine name.
Origin
LatinFrenchvaries by culture
Fun fact
Louis XII named his eldest daughter Claude, and the name was later used in the House of Lorraine and the family of Guise.
Confidence: mixed. Sources: History of Christian Names, Praenomina; or, the etymology of the principal Christian names of Great Britain and Ireland.