Kleeber History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
England

Etymology of Kleeber

What does the name Kleeber mean?

Kleeber is an old Anglo-Saxon name that was given to a person who was a person who worked with wood. The surname is derived from the Old English word cleofan which means to cleave or split. 1 2 The variant Clevenger was derived from the occupation "as one who cleaves wood."

Two sources postulate that the name could also have originated from "a dweller on a cleave or cliff." 3 1

Early Origins of the Kleeber family

The surname Kleeber was first found in Norfolk where Simon le Claver, was listed in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273. 4 Later, Agnes le Claver and John le Claver were both listed in Norfolk in 1333 5 In London, the source Rotuli Litterarum Clausarum in Turri Londinesi lists Henry le Claver and John le Clavier.

In Sussex, Richard and John le Cleuar were listed in the Subsidy Rolls for Sussex in 1332. 1

Early History of the Kleeber family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kleeber research. Another 162 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1273, 1332, 1379, 1742, 1746, 1784, 1785, 1787, 1790, 1800, 1806, 1815 and 1819 are included under the topic Early Kleeber History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kleeber Spelling Variations

The English language only became standardized in the last few centuries; therefore, spelling variations are common among early Anglo-Saxon names. As the form of the English language changed, even the spelling of literate people's names evolved. Kleeber has been recorded under many different variations, including Cleever, Cleaver, Clever, Kleever, Kleaver, Cleevar, Cleavar, Cliver, Cleiver, Clivar, Cleevor, Clearvor, Cleevare, Clevenger, Kleevare, Cleavare, Kleavare and many more.

Early Notables of the Kleeber family

William Cleaver (1742-1815), Bishop of St. Asaph, the eldest son of the Rev. W. Cleaver, master of a private school at Twyford in Buckinghamshire, and was the elder brother of Archbishop Cleaver. Cleaver became tutor to the Marquis of Buckingham. He was successively made vicar of Northop in Flintshire, prebendary of Westminster (1784), master of Brasenose College (1785), bishop of Chester...
Another 61 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kleeber Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kleeber migration to the United States +

For many English families, the political and religious disarray that shrouded England made the far away New World an attractive prospect. On cramped disease-ridden ships, thousands migrated to those British colonies that would eventually become Canada and the United States. Those hardy settlers that survived the journey often went on to make important contributions to the emerging nations in which they landed. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Kleeber or a variant listed above:

Kleeber Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Paul Kleeber, who arrived in Mississippi in 1875 6

Sources +

Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
Arthur, William , An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names. London: 1857. Print
Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
Rye, Walter, A History of Norfolk. London: Elliot Stock, 62, Paternoster Row, 1885. Print
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)