Clair
Feminine · “bright”
Clair is given to both — 4,310 girls and 12,041 boys since 1880. See Clair as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Clair is the older English spelling of Clare, and the Latin clarus means bright before it means clear.
How old is the name Clair?
Clair was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Clair alive today was born around 1979, making them about 46 years old. About 3,100 people named Clair are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Clair most popular?
Clair peaked in 1899, reaching #835 nationally. Today it ranks #4661, 3,826 places below that high. See the whole 1899 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From clarus to Clair
The story of Clair
Clare of Assisi founded the Poor Clares after hearing Francis preach, and she is the patron of television — designated so in 1958 because, when too ill to attend mass, she is said to have seen and heard it on the wall of her room. The name reached England with the Normans. Clair is the form used in English records through the nineteenth century for both sexes.
Meaning
bright, clear, famous
From Latin clarus, which covers bright, clear, distinct and renowned all at once; the same word gives clarity, declare, clarion and the -clair of Sinclair. English separated the senses that Latin held together.
How the name formed
- clarus
- Claire
- Clair
Related forms: Claire · Clare · Chiara
Pronouncing Clair
KLAIR
One syllable. Clair, Claire and Clare are said identically.
Nicknames for Clair
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most girls named
- 199562 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #835reached in 1899
- Change vs 2022
- +61.1%29 in 2025, from 18
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Clair in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Claire in French — spelling variant
- Clare in English — spelling variant
- Chiara in Italian — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Ohio, Texas.
Clairs among us
people named Clair are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 55,423 born in 2025 was named Clair
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Clair
- #4661
- Clair on the 2025 chart
- #925
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Clair went to 29 girls in 2025, but Klair is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 35, which makes it the 925th most-given girls’ name of the year — 3,736 places above the chart.
- Clair29
- Klair6
About 1 girl in 45,922 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 55,423 for Clair itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Clair sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Clair is headed
Clair should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Clair beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Clair in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning that holds brightness and fame in a single word.
- Five letters and one syllable, quick to write.
- Read correctly on sight by every English speaker.
- Claire and Clare are both more common and will be written for her.
- It has been used for both sexes historically, so forms may guess wrong.
- A one-syllable name gives little room for a nickname.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Clair
Feminine · #4661 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Clairs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 3,100 people named Clair are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Clair?
- Clair is the most-used spelling in US records — 29 of the 35 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Klair.
- How popular is the name Clair in 2025?
- Clair ranks #4661 among US girl names in 2025, with 29 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Clair?
- About 1 in every 55,423 US girls born in 2025 was named Clair — 29 in all.
- Will my child share the name Clair with classmates?
- Clair will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Clair
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Ellenor#4661 · Roselie#4661 · Marni#4661 · Menucha#4661 · Infinity#4661 · Lilya#4661 · Railyn#4661 · Zada#4661
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Clair? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Clair and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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