Clark
 A scribe or clerk, the occupation from which the name derives | |
| Language(s) | Old English |
|---|---|
| Origin | |
| Meaning | Clerk, scribe, secretary |
| Region of origin | England |
| Other names | |
| Related names | Clarke, Clerk |
| Frequency Comparisons[1] | |
Clark is an English language surname, ultimately derived from the Latin clericus meaning "scribe", "secretary" or a scholar within a religious order, referring to someone who was educated. Clark evolved from "clerk". First records of the name are found in 12th century England. The name has many variants.[2]
Clark is the twenty-seventh most common surname in the United Kingdom,[1] including placing fourteenth in Scotland.[3] Clark is also an occasional given name, as in the case of Clark Gable.
According to the 1990 United States Census, Clark was the twenty-first most frequently encountered surname, accounting for 0.23% of the population.[4] Notable people with the surname include:
- Abraham Clark (1725–1794), American politician and Revolutionary War figure
- Adam Clark, American meteorologist
- Alan Clark (1928–1999), British Conservative politician and author, son of Kenneth Clark
- Alistair Clark, Lord Clark (fl. 2016), Scottish judge, Senator of the College of Justice
- Alister Clark (1864–1949), Australian rose-breeder
- Allen George Clark (1898–1962), British businessman
- Andy Clark (musician), British musician
- Anne Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Anne Erin Clark, better known under her stage name St. Vincent (musician) (born 1982), American singer, songwriter, and musician
- Appleton P. Clark, Jr. (1865-1955), American architect
- Augusta Clark (1932–2013), American librarian, lawyer and politician
- Babe Clark, American football player
- Barbara M. Clark (1939-2016), New York politician
- Benjamin Preston Clark (1860-1939), an American entomologist
- Benjamin S. W. Clark (1829–1912), a New York politician
- Billy J. Clark (1778–1866), a New York physician and politician
- Bob Clark (Benjamin "Bob" Clark) (1941–2007), an American director
- Boyd A. Clark (1918-1978), an American politician and jurist
- Bracy Clark (1771–1860), an English veterinary surgeon specialising in the horse
- Brian Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Buddy Clark (1911–1949), American singer
- Carmel Clark (born 1965), New Zealand swimmer
- Catherine Clark (born 1976), Canadian television host
- Charles Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Chris Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Christian Clark (born 1979), Australian actor
- Claudine Clark, R&B singer and performer of the 1962 hit record "Party Lights"
- Clive Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Clive Clark (footballer) (1940–2014), English footballer
- Colin Clark (disambiguation)
- Corrie Clark (born 1982), American breaststroke swimmer
- Dallas Clark, American football player
- Daniel Kinnear Clark (1822–1896), Scottish railway mechanical engineer
- Darius Clark (1798–1871), New York physician and politician
- Dave Clark (musician) (born 1942), drummer of The Dave Clark Five
- David Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Davis Wasgatt Clark (1812–1871), American Bishop of the Methodist Episcopal Church
- Dick Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Dick Clark (1929–2012), entertainer and producer, host of Pyramid and Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve
- Douglas Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Duncan Clark (athlete) (1915–2003), Scottish hammer thrower
- Duncan W. Clark (1910–2007), American public health specialist
- Dwight Clark, American football player
- Earl Clark, American Basketball player
- Edward Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Edward Clark (1888–1962), English conductor and music producer
- Elky Clark (1898-1956), Scottish boxer of the 1920s
- Ernest Clark (1912–1994), British actor
- Eugene Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Frank Clark (footballer), English football player
- Frank M. Clark (1915–2003), American Congressman
- Gavin Brown Clark (1846–1930), MP for Caithness
- George Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Gerry Clark (1927–1999), New Zealand sailor and ornithologist
- Ginger Clark (1879–1943), American baseball pitcher
- Glenn Clark (born 1969), Canadian coach of Toronto Rock
- Grahame Clark (1907-1995), British archaeologist
- Greenleaf Clark (1835-1904), American jurist
- Guy Clark (1941–2016), American Texas country and folk singer, musician, songwriter, recording artist, and performer
- Helen Clark (born 1950), Prime Minister of New Zealand from 1999 to 2008
- Hilda Clark (1872–1932), American Coca-Cola advertising spokesperson
- Hilda Margery Clarke (born 1926), English painter and curator
- Horace Clark, 1830s New York politician
- Horace F. Clark (1815–1873), US Congressman from New York
- Hugh Massey Clark (1886–1956), New York philatelist
- Hulda Regehr Clark, alternative medicine practitioner
- Isabella Clark, wife of Prime Minister of Canada Sir John A. Macdonald
- Jack Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- James Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Jason Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Jeff Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Jim Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Joe Clark (born 1939), former Prime Minister of Canada
- John Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Jonas Gilman Clark (1815–1900), American businessman and the founder of Clark University
- Jonathan Clark (disambiguation)
- Joseph Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Joshua Clark, (born 1980), American writer
- Karen Clark (born 1945), American politician from Minnesota
- Karen Clark (born 1960), American gospel four-time Grammy Award winning singer
- Katy Clark (born 1967), Scottish politician and trade union official
- Kelly Clark (born 1983), American snowboarder
- Kelly Clark (lawyer) (1957–2013), American lawyer
- Ken Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Kenneth Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Leslie J. Clark (1924–2003), British engineer and founder of Parvalux
- Louis Clark, musician and conductor with the Orchestra (former members of ELO and ELO Part II)
- Lynn G. Clark, American botanist
- Manning Clark (1915–1991), Australian historian
- Marcus R. Clark (born 1956), Louisiana Supreme Court justice
- Mark Wayne Clark (1896–1984), American army general in WW2 (Italy) and the Korean War
- Nancy B. Clark, person of Marstons Mills, Massachusetts
- Ocky Clark (born 1960), American middle distance runner
- Orville Clark (1801–1862), New York politician
- Otey Clark (born 1915), American baseball pitcher
- R. Foster Clark, American college sports coach
- R. Scott Clark (born 1961) American seminary professor
- Ramsey Clark (born 1927), U.S. Attorney General and activist
- Ranza Clark (born 1961), Canadian middle distance runner
- Robert Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Robin Clark (pop singer), (born 1949), 1960s American pop singer
- Roger Clark, British rally driver
- Ryan Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Samuel Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Samuel Delbert Clark (1910–2003), Canadian sociologist
- Satterlee Clark, Jr., American politician
- Shawn M. Clark (born ca 1964), American organizational theorist
- Sherman Clark (1899–1980), American Olympic rower and Rear Admiral
- Simon Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Steve Clark (1960–1991), British guitarist for Def Leppard
- Stuart Clark (born 1975), Australian cricketer
- Sir Terence Clark (born 1934), British retired diplomat and writer
- Theresa Maria Clark (c. 1890 – 1953), person of New York
- Thomas Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Tom Clark (journalist), Canadian television journalist
- Tom C. Clark (1899–1977), U.S. Attorney General, U.S. Supreme Court justice
- Tracy Clark, fictional character from The CW primetime drama 90210
- Wendel Clark (born 1966), retired Canadian ice hockey player
- Wesley K. Clark (born 1944), American Army General in the Vietnam War and Kosovo
- Wilfrid Le Gros Clark (1895–1971), British palaeanthropologist
- Will Clark (born 1964), American baseball player
- William Clark (disambiguation), multiple people
- Zenas Clark (1795–1864), New York politician
See also
- Clark Kent, the civilian identity of cultural icon, Superman
- The Clark Sisters, American gospel vocalists from Detroit
- Clark (taxonomic authority)
- Clarke
- Clerke (disambiguation)
References
- ^ a b Clark Surname at Forebears
- ^ "Surname Clark". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 2008-02-05.
- ^ http://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/births/popular-names/archive/100-most-common-surnames
- ^ United States Census Bureau (9 May 1995). s:1990 Census Name Files dist.all.last (1-100). Retrieved on 2008-07-04.
External links
- Clark(e) Surname DNA Project
Data related to Clark at Wikispecies
This page lists people with the surname Clark.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.