Explore the Family Name Clerge

The meaning of Clerge

French and Haitian (Clergé): nickname from French clergé ‘clergy’, a derivative of the Late Latin clericus (see Clerc). This surname was brought to the US from Haiti, where it is most common, and also from the Dominican Republic, where it is of Haitian origin and rare.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Clerge in the United States?

According to the data derived from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Clerge has significantly risen in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, Clerge was ranked as the 96,480th most common last name in the United States, a rank that leaped to 61,123 by 2010, signifying a change of 36.65%. The number of individuals carrying the Clerge surname also witnessed an 88% increase, moving from 175 people in 2000 to 329 in 2010. Consequently, the proportion of people with this surname per 100,000 residents rose by 83.33% during the same period.

20002010Change
Rank#96,480#61,12336.65%
Count17532988%
Proportion per 100k0.060.1183.33%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Clerge

The ethnic identity associated with the surname Clerge, according to the Decennial U.S. Census, is primarily Black. In 2000, 86.86% of those bearing the surname Clerge identified as Black, and this figure increased slightly to 94.22% by 2010. An interesting development over the decade was the emergence of individuals identifying as Hispanic under the Clerge surname, which was not recorded in 2000 but stood at 3.04% in 2010. Conversely, the percentage of people identifying as two or more races decreased significantly, from 10.29% in 2000 to just 1.82% in 2010. There were no records of individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, White, or American Indian and Alaskan Native among those carrying the Clerge surname in either year.

20002010Change
Black86.86%94.22%8.47%
Hispanic0%3.04%0%
Two or More Races10.29%1.82%-82.31%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
White0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%