Clearie: Meaning, Pronunciation and Origin
Clearie is an Irish boy's name meaning “clerk, cleric.” Here’s how to say it, where it comes from, and names that go well with it.
Updated September 2026
- Meaning
- Clerk, cleric
- Gender
- Boy
- Also spelled
- Cleary
How do you pronounce Clearie?
Clearie is pronounced KLEER-ee. It has two syllables, with the stress on the first. Other spellings: Cleary.
What does Clearie mean?
Clearie is a spelling of Cleary, from the Irish surname Ó Cléirigh, “descendant of Cléireach.” Cléireach means “clerk” or “cleric,” a churchman and, by extension, a scholar. Patrick Woulfe’s Irish Names and Surnames (1923) traces the family to a Cléireach of the mid-9th century, a descendant of Guaire the Hospitable, king of Connacht, and notes that the family once ruled Aidhne in south County Galway.
The best-known branch, the O’Clerys of Donegal, became poets and chroniclers to the O’Donnells. Mícheál Ó Cléirigh, a Franciscan friar, was the chief author of the Annals of the Four Masters, compiled between 1632 and 1636. Like many Irish surnames, Cleary is now also used as a first name.
Sources: Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames (1923), Behind the Name, Ó Dónaill's Irish dictionary (teanglann.ie), Wikipedia.
How popular is Clearie in Ireland?
Clearie is rare in Ireland. Since 1964, fewer than three baby boys a year have been registered with the name, so it doesn't appear in the Central Statistics Office's baby name tables.
Source: Central Statistics Office, Irish Babies’ Names 2025 and its boys' names table.
Clearie in Ogham
Ogham is the oldest way of writing Irish. It was carved along the edges of standing stones, mostly between the 4th and 6th centuries, and read from the bottom up. In later tradition each letter was named after a tree or plant. Here’s Clearie, letter by letter.
- CColl, hazel
- LLuis, rowan
- EEadhadh, aspen
- AAilm, pine
- RRuis, elder
- IIodhadh, yew
- EEadhadh, aspen
Write any name in Ogham with our Ogham translator
Names that go with Clearie
Questions about Clearie
- How do you pronounce Clearie?
- Clearie is pronounced KLEER-ee. Two syllables, stress on the first.
- What does Clearie mean?
- Clearie means “clerk, cleric.”
- Is Clearie a girl's name or a boy's name?
- Clearie is a boy's name.
- Is Clearie a rare name?
- Yes. Fewer than three boys a year are registered as Clearie in Ireland, too few to appear in the Central Statistics Office's tables.