Gender Masculine
Usage English
Pronounced Pron. KLEHM-ənt  [key·IPA]

Meaning & History

English form of the Late Latin name Clemens (or sometimes of its derivative Clementius), which meant "merciful, gentle". This was the name of 14 popes, including Saint Clement I, the third pope, one of the Apostolic Fathers. Another saint by this name was Clement of Alexandria, a 3rd-century theologian and church father who attempted to reconcile Christian and Platonic philosophies. It has been in general as a given name in Christian Europe (in various spellings) since early times. In England it became rare after the Protestant Reformation, though it was revived in the 19th century.

Related Names

DiminutiveClem
Feminine FormClemence
Other Languages & CulturesKliment(Bulgarian) Climent(Catalan) Klement(Czech) Clemens(Danish) Clemens(Dutch) Clément(French) Clemens, Klemens(German) Kelemen(Hungarian) Clemente(Italian) Clemens, Clementius(Late Roman) Kliment(Macedonian) Clemens(Norwegian) Klemens(Polish) Clemente(Portuguese) Kliment, Klim(Russian) Klement(Slovak) Klemen(Slovene) Clemente(Spanish) Clemens(Swedish) Klyment, Klym(Ukrainian)
Surname DescendantsClemens, Clement(English)
Same SpellingClément

Popularity

People think this name is

classic   mature   formal   upper class   wholesome   strong   refined   strange   serious  

Name Days

Romania: January 23
Romania: November 24

Categories

Entry updated June 13, 2019