In 1890 clarke was the 32nd most common surname in ireland and there were approximately 15 400 people with this name.
Clarke family crest ireland.
Early history of the clarke family.
The clarke surname is steeped in irish history.
The surname clarke was first found in kent where they held a family seat from very ancient times some say well before the norman conquest and the arrival of duke william at hastings in 1066 a d.
Crest a horse s head erased or charged with a cross pattee gu.
The coats of arms and family crests with meaning for the family name clarke are collected in the armorial general by johan baptiste rietstap this work is the greatest work of heraldry ever written and drawn with more than 100 000 family names from around the world english scotish welsh spanish french italians poles portuguese dutch etc among which is the name clarke arranged.
The surname clark originally derived from the latin form clericus.
Learn about the history and the clarke family motto.
Even today the word and profession clerk is typically pronounced clark throughout the united kingdom.
The name clark comes from one of the family having worked as a person who concerned himself with matters of scholarly importance or of religious orders or as a secretary.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our clarke research.
Clark family coat of arms.
Variant spellings include clarke clerk clerke and in ireland cleary or o cle a ry.
Clark is a variant of clerk indicating that an ancestor was someone who could read and write probably a cleric in a religious order as it is a corrupted form of the latin clericus or scholar.
The irish version of the surname is believed to have come from county galway and county antrim and spread to county donegal and county dublin the name is derived from the irish gaelic sept ó cléirigh meaning clerk.
In 1890 in the registrar s records of births in ireland most clarke births occurred in counties antrim dublin mayo cavan and louth.
Four horses heads erased or.
Antrim cavan dublin louth and mayo.
Early origins of the clarke family.
Clarke is a popular surname in ireland.
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The name may have been norman in origin having.
Clarke was the 32nd most numerous surname in ireland in 1890.
It was as common in england in the mid 19th century and even commoner in scotland.
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Counties in which this surname is most commonly found.