Clymer
An English-language surname of uncertain origin, probably tied to a personal name or an old word related to climbing or clambering.
The #9,736 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 92,744 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The 19th-century sources supplied here do not give a direct derivation for Clymer; they only mention the name in passing. On general onomastic grounds, it may be connected with an older nickname or occupational form related to climbing or a climber, or it may reflect a family-name variant shaped by spelling changes in English-speaking countries. The surname should therefore be treated as uncertain rather than assigned a single firm meaning.
History
The name is best known in the United States through early bearers such as George Clymer, a signer of the Declaration of Independence. The supplied historical references also show the surname in educated and urban American contexts by the mid-19th century. Because the excerpts do not discuss its etymology directly, its deeper history remains unclear from these sources alone.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
George Clymer of Philadelphia was one of the signers of the Declaration of Independence.
From the historical record
“"Mr. Rushout Is a British M.P., and that name is found in Roxbury. Mr. Climb lives at Selby, C. W. We have Climie. Mr. Clymer is a graduate of Harvard. [He will, doubtless, eventually take the highest degree.] Mr. Clymer of Philadelphia signed the Declaration of Independence. Mr. Creeper lives at Hampton. ]\Ir.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom