Clarkson (surname)
| Gender | Unisex |
|---|---|
| Language(s) | English |
| Origin | |
| Language(s) | Old English |
| Word/name | clerc, clerec |
| Meaning | "priest" |
| Other names | |
| Variant form(s) | Clarson[1] |
Clarkson is a common English surname.
Etymology
It is derived from a patronymic form of an occupational name. The surname means "son of the clerk",[1] and refers to a scribe or secretary. The surname is derived from the Old English clerc, clerec, which means priest; the Old English words were later reinforced by the Old French form of the word clerc. Both the Old English and Old French words are from the Late Latin clericus, which is derived from the Greek klerikos, which is in turn a derivative of kleros, which means "inheritance", "legacy".[2]
An early instances of the surname in English records is "le Clerkissone", in 1308; "Clerksone", in 1332; and "Clarkson", in 1491.[1]
Persons with the surname
- Adrienne Clarkson (born 1939), former Governor General of Canada
- Alastair Clarkson (born 1968), Australian rules football coach and former player
- A. E. Clarkson (Albert Ernest Clarkson 1876–1936), South Australian businessman
- Alison H. Clarkson (born 1955), American politician
- Bob Clarkson (born 1939), New Zealand politician
- Courtney Clarkson (born 1991), Australian rules footballer
- David Clarkson (disambiguation)
- David Clarkson (born 1984), professional ice hockey player
- Ellis Clarkson (c. 1885 — October 1947) English rugby league footballer who played in the 1900s and 1910s
- Jeremy Clarkson (born 1960), English motoring journalist and former co-presenter of BBC TV series Top Gear
- John Clarkson (born 1861), American baseball player
- John Clarkson (abolitionist) (1764-1828) British Royal Navy officer and founder of Freetown, Sierra Leone
- Jordan Clarkson (born 1992), Filipino-American basketball player
- Julian Clarkson, English baritone
- Kelly Clarkson (born 1982), American Idol winner; singer/songwriter
- Kenneth L. Clarkson, American computer scientist
- Kevin Clarkson, Attorney General of Alaska
- Lana Clarkson (1962–2003), American actress and murder victim
- Lucy Clarkson (born 1982), British model
- Margaret Clarkson (born 1941), English artist who paints nostalgic scenes
- Nathaniel James Clarkson (born 1978), British record producer, aka Nat Clarxon & NJC
- Patricia Clarkson (born 1959), American actress
- Phil Clarkson, English footballer
- Robert Clarkson, American tax protester
- Stephen Clarkson (born 1937), Canadian political scientist
- Stu Clarkson (1919–1957), American football player
- Thomas Clarkson (1760–1846), British abolitionist
- Tony Clarkson (born 1939), English cricketer
- Walter Clarkson (1878–1946), American baseball player
- William Clarkson (disambiguation)
- William Clarkson (1859–1934) Australian vice admiral
- Willy Clarkson (1861–1934), theatrical costume designer and wigmaker
Fictional characters
- Tom Clarkson, a fictional character in the BBC television drama Waterloo Road, played by Jason Done.
- Louise Clarkson, a fictional character in the American TV series, Everybody Hates Chris, played by Whoopi Goldberg.
- Myles Clarkson, played by Alan Alda in the 1971 American horror film, The Mephisto Waltz
References
- Reaney, Percy Hilde (1995), Wilson, Richard Middlewood (ed.), A Dictionary of English Surnames (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 98, ISBN 0-19-863146-4.
- Learn about the family history of your surname, Ancestry.com, retrieved 18 February 2011, which cited: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4, for the surname "Clarkson".
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