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Clairissa

Feminine · Latin roots · “bright”

1975high 1994
Rare todaygiven to only a few children a year
rare

Clairissa is Clarissa with the French Claire written into it, a three-syllable name built on the Latin clarus, 'clear, bright'. In Italian, a clarissa is also a nun of the Poor Clares, the order founded by Saint Clare of Assisi; French says clarisse and Spanish clarisa.

How old is the name Clairissa?

Clairissa first appears in US birth records in 1975 — 50 years ago. The typical Clairissa alive today was born around 1997, making them about 28 years old. About 500 people named Clairissa are estimated to be alive in the US today.

When was the name Clairissa most popular?

Clairissa peaked in 1981, reaching #4344 nationally. See the whole 1981 chart.

Compare this nameMore “C” names

Lists built from the same records:

I

Where it comes from

The story of Clairissa

Clare of Assisi, a follower of Francis, founded an order of enclosed nuns in the thirteenth century, and the Romance languages named its members after her: in Italian a Poor Clare is a clarissa, in French a clarisse, in Spanish a clarisa. So in Italian, Clarissa is also the ordinary word for one of those nuns. Clairissa keeps the name's shape and dresses its first syllable in the French spelling of Claire, joining two forms of the same Latin root. Nothing records when the blended spelling first appeared.

Meaning

bright, famous (from Latin clarus, as Clarissa)

Clairissa is a spelling of Clarissa, a Latin-shaped name built on clarus, 'clear, bright', later 'famous'. The Clair- borrows the French spelling of Claire.

How the name formed

  1. clarusLatin
  2. Clara, Clare
  3. Clarissa
  4. Clairissa

Related forms: Clarissa · Clarisse · Clarisa

Pronouncing Clairissa

kluh-RISS-uh

Said like Clarissa. Some readers will open with a fuller KLAIR, as in Claire.

Nicknames for Clairissa

Moderate

ClaireThe first syllable in its French spelling, a full name of its own
RissaA short form used for Clarissa and Marissa
II

What the data says

The long climb, and where it stands now

GIRLS NAMED · 1975–20252211022519752019

US babies named Clairissa per year from 1975 to 2025
AVERAGE RANK BY DECADE#1#10#100#1000#43441970s2010s

The same years in position rather than babies

First recorded
1975
Most girls named
199422 — the highest on record
Peak rank
#4344reached in 1981
Change vs 2018
−16.7%5 in 2019, from 6
Clairissa sits in the rare tail. Its best year on record was 1994, with 22 girls. Today it is given to few enough children that it does not enter the ranked charts at all.

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.

Clairissa in other languages

The same name elsewhere

  • Clarissa in Italian — same name
  • Clarisse in French — related form
  • Clarisa in Spanish — related form

Clairissas among us

500

people named Clairissa are estimated to be alive in the US today

Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method

III

Is it right for you

Fashion outlook

Clairissa sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.

Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them

The trade-off

Practical strengths
  • Rests on Clarissa, a name with a long record in English and a clear Latin meaning.
  • Offers Claire and Rissa as short forms.
  • Its first syllable ties it visibly to Claire, a well-known name.
What to consider
  • Most people will write Clarissa; the i needs spelling out, and forms will drop it.
  • The first syllable can be read as kluh or KLAIR, so the name will need saying once.

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Clairissa

Feminine · Latin roots

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Frequently asked

How many Clairissas are there in the world?
No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 500 people named Clairissa are estimated to be alive in the US today.
How popular is the name Clairissa in 2025?
Clairissa is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
Will my child share the name Clairissa with classmates?
Clairissa will almost certainly be the only one in school.

More C names

The most-given names starting with C, all years combined.

Carol#2239 · Cynthia#1013 · Catherine#313 · Christine#1272 · Carolyn#1222 · Christina#770 · Charlotte#2 · Cheryl#4352

Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Clairissa? See the current top 100.

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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology

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