Clora
A feminine name derived from the Latin "clarus", meaning bright or clear.
Name Census estimates that about 258 living Americans carry the first name Clora. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Clora today is around 79 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Clora births was 1924 (49 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Clora. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Clora is about 79 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Cloras were born before 1957.
People living today
258
~ 1 in 1,328,505 Americans
Peak year
1924
49 babies that year
Average age
79
years old
1973 SSA rank
#8,668
Tracked since 1882
Census
Clora in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 477 people with the first name Clora, which placed it at #21,336 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#21,336
National first-name rank
People counted
477
477 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
45.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Clora
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Clora is Black at 45.5%. The next largest groups are White (44.0%) and Hispanic (5.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Clora described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Clora at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American45.5% · 217
- White44.0% · 210
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 24
- Two or more races2.9% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.5% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 5
Popularity
Clora: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Clora from the 1880s through to the 1970s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 401 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Clora by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Clora during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cloras live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky recorded the most babies named Clora, while North Carolina, Oklahoma, Louisiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 19 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Clora
The name Clora has its roots in the Latin language and culture. It is derived from the Latin word "clarus," which means bright or illustrious. The name likely emerged during the classical period of ancient Rome, when Latin was the dominant language of the region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Clora can be found in Roman historical records from the 2nd century AD. In these documents, a woman named Clora is mentioned as a prominent figure in the city of Pompeii. However, the details of her life and accomplishments are scarce.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Clora remained relatively obscure, with few notable individuals bearing this moniker. It was not until the Renaissance period that the name began to gain popularity once again, particularly among the Italian nobility and aristocracy.
In the 16th century, Clora Sforza (1490-1554) was a renowned Italian noblewoman and patron of the arts. She was known for her patronage of numerous artists and intellectuals, including the legendary painter Raphael.
Another notable figure named Clora was Clora Zori (1635-1712), an Italian opera singer and composer. She was celebrated for her exceptional vocal talents and was a prominent figure in the musical circles of 17th century Italy.
In the 19th century, Clora Bryant (1834-1892) was an American abolitionist and women's rights advocate. She was actively involved in the Underground Railroad and played a crucial role in helping enslaved individuals escape to freedom.
Clora Wheeler (1857-1932) was an American educator and suffragist. She dedicated her life to improving educational opportunities for women and advocating for their right to vote.
Throughout history, the name Clora has been associated with individuals who have demonstrated a bright and illustrious character, reflecting the meaning of the name's Latin roots. While not as common as some other names, it has left an indelible mark on various fields, including the arts, music, social justice, and education.
People
Clora + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Clora as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Clora: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Clora?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 258 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Clora going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,328,505 US residents.
Is Clora a common name?
We classify Clora as "Very Rare". It ranks above 77.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,800 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Clora most popular?
The single biggest year for Clora was 1924, when 49 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Clora is about 79 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Clora in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 477 people with the name Clora, or 0.16 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #21,336 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Clora in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Clora?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Clora appears almost entirely female. Of the 476 people counted with this name, 99.4% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Clora?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Clora is Black at 45.5%. The next largest groups are White (44.0%) and Hispanic (5.0%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Clora most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Clora in the 2020 Census, accounting for 45.5% (217 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Clora in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Clora a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Clora in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Clora still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Clora in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Clora can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have Clora as a first name?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Clora on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.