Clevenger
A surname of uncertain origin, probably a local or altered form connected with the Cleve- group of names.
The #2,889 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 24,843 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually treated as belonging to the broader English Cleve- family of names, which often come from place-names based on Old English elements meaning a cliff, slope, or bank. The ending -enger is not straightforward, and in older surname lists Clevenger is often grouped with similar names rather than fully explained. That makes the exact original sense uncertain, though it likely began as a regional or topographic name that later stabilized in its present form.
History
The name is recorded in 19th-century surname lists alongside Cleve, Cleveland, Clever, and other Clew-/Cleve- forms, suggesting it was recognized as part of that name cluster. In the United States it is now an established but uncommon surname, with a small modern population compared with more common Cleve- variants. The spelling may reflect regional development, phonetic change, or later alteration in English-speaking countries.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because the older sources list Clevenger next to several different Cleve- surnames without explaining it, the name remains one of those cases where the spelling is well known but the precise origin is not.
From the historical record
“Cleasby, Cleaves, Clegg, Clemens, Clements, Clem- son, Clendenin and Clendinin, Clerkin, Cleve, Clevenger, Cline, Clingbury, Cloney and Clooney, Closson, Clough, Clous and Cloues, Cluer, Cluff ; Cluin, Clune and Cluney; Cluver, Cobe, Cobish, Cochran and Cochrane ; Cofren, Coffren, and COFRAN ; COGAN, CoGGAN,*…”
— Suffolk Surnames (3rd ed.)