Clarkson (surname)

This article is about the surname Clarkson. For other uses, see Clarkson.

Clarkson
Gender	Unisex
Language(s)	English
Origin
Language(s)	Old English
Word/Name	clerc, clerec
Meaning	"priest"
Other names
Variant(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

• Alistair Clarkson (born 1968), Australian rules footballer, who played for North Melbourne and Melbourne and is the current coach of Hawthorn.
• Adrienne Clarkson (born 1939), former Governor General of Canada
• David Clarkson (born 1984), professional ice hockey player
• Jeremy Clarkson (born 1960), English motoring journalist and co-presenter of BBC's Top Gear
• John Clarkson (born 1861), American baseball player
• Kelly Clarkson (born 1982), American Idol winner; singer/songwriter
• Lana Clarkson (1962–2003), American actress and Phil Spector murder victim
• Lucy Clarkson (born 1982), British model
• Margaret Clarkson (born 1941), English Artist who paints nosalgic 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 (born 1919), American football player
• Thomas Clarkson (1760–1846), British abolitionist
• Tony Clarkson (born 1939), cricketer

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 Whoopie Goldberg.

References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Reaney, Percy Hilde (1995), Wilson, Richard Middlewood, ed., A Dictionary of English Surnames (3rd ed.), Oxford University Press, p. 98, ISBN 0-19-8631464 .
2. ^ Learn about the family history of your surname, Ancestry.com, http://www.ancestry.com/learn/facts/default.aspx?, 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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