Claude
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Meaning
traditionally lame (Roman family name Claudius)
Famously borne by Claude Monet, whose water lilies helped found and outlast Impressionism.
Claude across languages
One shared root links 4 names across 3 languages.
Shared root: from the Roman clan name Claudius, traditionally tied to claudus "lame"
The constellation
More branches
How popular is Claude around the world?
In the United States, 230 babies were named Claude between 2020 and 2025. In Canada, 11 boys named Claude were born in 2024, ranked 1,817th among boys that year.
Claude is on the official records of the United States, Canada, France, England and Wales, Spain, Argentina and Brazil.
United States
1 in 95,000
In the United States, 230 babies were named Claude between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Claude peaked in the 1890s and the 1950s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 23,000
In Canada, 11 boys named Claude were born in 2024, ranked 1,817th among boys that year.
In Canada, 5 girls named Claude were born in 2024, ranked 3,457th among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
France
1 in 32,000
In France, about 20 boys named Claude were born in 2025, ranked 1,672nd among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
England and Wales
1 in 49,000
In England and Wales, 12 boys named Claude were born in 2025, ranked 2,014th among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Spain
1 in 280,000
In Spain, 118 residents are named Claude, ranked 7,241st among men, with a mean age of 64.1 years.
In Spain, 43 residents are named Claude, ranked 15,874th among women, with a mean age of 72.4 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Argentina
1 in 330,000
In Argentina, 2 newborns were given the name Claude in 2024.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Brazil
1 in 330,000
At the 2022 census, 583 people in Brazil were named Claude, ranked 12,038th, with a median age of 50.
Among people named Claude living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1970s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Mexico City City
last on record 2020
Claude is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Montevideo City
last on record 1986
Claude is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
New Zealand
last on record 1951
Claude is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
South Australia
last on record 2007
Claude is not on the 2017 record for South Australia, whose registry publishes every name given that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Not on the record in Puerto Rico, Ireland, Scotland and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Claude
People given the name Claude in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1940 to 1979. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Claude deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Claude truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Claude fits with your family’s names and surname.
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