Show ContentsClaud History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The noble French surname Claud is patronymic in origin, and is derived from the name of the original bearer's father. The surname Claud is a variation of the Latin name Claudius, a Roman family name derived from "claudus" meaning "lame." This name was made popular as a result of having been borne by a seventh century saint who was bishop of Besancon. Thus the surname signifies "the son or descendant of Claude." 1

Early Origins of the Claud family

The surname Claud was first found in Normandy in Vieux-Bourg, a commune in the Calvados department. 1

Early History of the Claud family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Claud research. Another 70 words (5 lines of text) covering the years 1619, 1687 and 1851 are included under the topic Early Claud History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Claud Spelling Variations

There were a great number of spelling variations in French surnames. One reason for this was the wide variety of cultural influences present in France during the early development of the French language. The many spelling variations of the name include Clot, Claude, Cloux, Claudet, Clausel, Glaude, Claud, Claudel, Claudin and many more.

Early Notables of the Claud family

Notable amongst the family in this period was

  • Jean Claude (1619-1687), a French Protestant divine


Claud migration to the United States +

In 1643, 109 years after the first landings by Cartier, there were only about 300 people in Quebec, in 1663 there were only 500, 2,000 migrants arrived during the next decade. Early marriage was desperately encouraged amongst the immigrants. Youths of 18 took fourteen-year-old girls for their wives. The fur trade was developed and attracted migrants, both noble and commoner from France. 15,000 explorers left Montreal in the late 17th and 18th centuries. Migration from France to New France or Quebec as it was now more popularly called, continued from France until it fell in 1759. By 1675, there were 7000 French in Quebec. By the same year the Acadian presence in Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward Island had reached 500. In 1755, 10,000 French Acadians refused to take an oath of allegiance to England and were deported to Louisiana. Meanwhile, in Quebec, the French race flourished, founding in Lower Canada, one of the two great solitudes which became Canada. Many distinguished contributions have been made by members of this family name Claud. It has been prominent in the arts, religion, politics and culture in France and New France. Amongst the settlers in North America with this distinguished name Claud were

Claud Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Nicholas Claud, who arrived in Maryland in 1676 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Claud (post 1700) +

  • René Claud Simard CM (b. 1961), Canadian pop singer from Quebec
  • Alexander Claud Cockburn (1941-2012), Scottish-born, American political journalist and writer
  • Claud Irvine Boswell (1742-1824), Lord Balmuto, Scottish judge, son of John Boswell of Balmuto
  • Claud S. Mann, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from New Mexico, 1952
  • Claud Napoleon Sapp (b. 1886), American Democratic Party politician, Member of South Carolina State House of Representatives, 1912-14, 1920-24; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from South Carolina, 1924, 1928, 1932, 1936
  • Claud Phillimore (1911-1994), 4th Baron Phillimore, English architect
  • Sir Claud Humphrey Meredith Waldock CMG OBE QC (1904-1981), English jurist and international lawyer who served as the British judge in the European Court of Human Rights from 1966 until 1974
  • Claud W. Beelman (1883-1963), American architect known for his many examples of Beaux-Arts, Art Deco and Streamline Moderne style buildings
  • Field Marshal Sir Claud William Jacob GCB GCSI KCMG (1863-1948), British Army officer, Commander-in-Chief, India, Military Secretary to the India Office
  • Claud Neville Woolley (1886-1962), English cricketer


  1. Dionne, N.-E., Les Canadiens-Francais Origine Des Familles. Baltimore: Geneological Publishing Company, 1969. Print
  2. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)


Houseofnames.com on Facebook