Surname Cloes - Meaning and Origin
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Cloes: What does the surname Cloes mean?
The last name Cloes is of Dutch origin derived from the patronymic "Claes". It is an abbreviation of "Nicolaes," a popular Dutch name, originally given in honor of St. Nicholas. This name translates to "people of victory," which is fitting given that its earliest known use dates back to early 12th century Holland, when victory for the Dutch during their fight for independence was near. Historically, Claes was a popular name among Dutch families and many of them used the shortened version, Cloes, as their last name.
Today, Cloes is still a very common Dutch last name and is found in countries around the world. In the United States, it is most common on the East Coast, from New York to Virginia, though it doesn't rank among the top 1000 last names in the U.S. Canada's records list the name as being among the 35,000 most common surnames in the country.
Those with the last name Cloes are said to have strong leadership and organization skills, and are known for taking on challenges with confidence. They are also known for their decisiveness when faced with difficult situations. Despite their strong and sometimes intimidating exterior, Cloes are compassionate and tend to care deeply for others.
Order DNA origin analysisCloes: Where does the name Cloes come from?
The last name Cloes is most commonly found in the United States. According to the U.S. Census Bureau in 2018, the most common states for the surname Cloes were New York (over 1,100 individuals), Pennsylvania (over 1,000 individuals) and Ohio (close to 500 individuals). Although this is the most common in the U.S., this surname can also be found in areas such as Australia, Canada, France, and the United Kingdom. It is also likely to be located in other French and Dutch speaking nations due to its origin of having the Germanic root of “Klose,” which translates to “near” in English.
The surname Cloes is not as prominent as other common last names in the U.S. such as Smith, Johnson, and Jones, but is instead considered a “rare” name in some areas. This may be due to a variety of factors such as spelling and pronunciation changing over time. For example, the New York State population in 2018 listed the surname as “Clo” rather than “Cloes.” Nevertheless, the surname is still quite popular in parts of the United States, but may be less common in other parts of the world.
Variations of the surname Cloes
The surname Cloes is of French origin and can be further broken down to its regional origins to more accurately trace the history of the surname. Cloes is a less common spelling and alternative spellings of the surname include Cloues, Cloetz, Cluzze, Cloeten, and Cloete. Closes is another popular spelling form in some regions.
In French speaking regions, the name is often found as Clouet, Clouette, Clouzet, Cluzeau, Cluzeaux, Cluzet, and Cluzeaud. In Italian speaking regions the name can be found as Chiosi, Clozzi and Closi. In Spanish speaking regions the name can be found as Cles, Clouzes and Opies.
In English speaking countries, Cloes often appears as Clous, Clows, and Clouse, with some variation in spellings. It can also be found as Cloyce in Scotland, and Clowse in the United States.
In Germany, the surname has switched to Klose and Klosel. In Hungary, it appears as Kloez, Klecz, and Kloz. Finally, reliable resources have ratios of international Cloes variants in Austria, Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Finland, Belgium, Slovakia, Czech Republic, Russia, Poland, Latvia and Lithuania.
Overall, the surname Cloes has a diverse range of variants, spellings, and surnames with multiple country and regional origins.
Famous people with the name Cloes
- Chloë Sevigny: American actress, director, model, and fashion designer.
- Chloë Grace Moretz: American actress and model.
- Sarah Clark Cloes: American lawyer, politician and diplomat.
- Adam Cloe: American author, journalist and financial historian.
- Michael Cloes: German actor, voice actor, and musician.
- Cloe Poisson: professional ice hockey player.
- Cynthia Cloes: French philosopher and art critic.
- Nino Cloes (Nicholas Alphonse Cloes): French racing cyclist and Olympic gold medalist.
- Harry Cloes: 19th century English cricketer.
- Lou Cloes: American water polo player and coach.