Clifford
A place-based surname meaning “from the cliff ford,” later made famous by an old noble family of Norman origin.
The #1,618 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 13,879 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Clifford is a locational surname from a place-name built from Old English elements meaning “cliff” and “ford,” referring to a river crossing by a steep bank or cliff. Historical forms were Latinized as De Clivo Forte, showing the same basic sense of “cliff ford.” In English records, the surname was taken from places called Clifford, especially in Herefordshire, and by extension from related localities with the same name.
History
The best-known bearers were the medieval Clifford family of Herefordshire, who took their surname from Clifford Castle and lands there and later became an important noble house. They were long styled in medieval records and charters under forms such as de Clifford or De Clivo Forte. The name then spread as a hereditary surname beyond the aristocratic line and is now widely used in the English-speaking world.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The Clifford family’s Latin charter form, De Clivo Forte, is a neat medieval translation of the place-name’s literal meaning.
From the historical record
“York, Sussex, Northampton, and Wilts. CLIFFORD. The noble family, sur- uamed from Clifford (tlieir castle and lauds in CO. Hereford, which they acquired in marriage in the XII. cent.), came from Normaudy with the Conqueror, and then bore the name of Fitz Pons. They claimed lineal descent from Ricliard, Duke of Nor-…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom