Cliff Family History

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Cliff Name Meaning

English: habitational name from a place named with Old English clif ‘slope’, ‘bank’, ‘cliff’, or a topographic name from the same word. The Old English word was used not only in the sense of modern English cliff but also of much gentler slopes and frequently also of a riverbank.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press


Similar surnames: Aliff, Clive, Oliff, Iliff, Clift, Clint, Griff, Califf, Cuff, Elliff

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Cliff Ethnicity Estimate

What are the common regions with the Cliff name?

These results combine data from everyone in the AncestryDNA® database with the last name Cliff. The Ancestry® ethnicity regions shown are top five most common on average for these people.

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  • England & Wales

    50%

  • Ireland & Scotland

    23%

  • Germanic Europe

    7%

  • Eastern Europe & Russia

    3%

  • Norway

    3%

Your own DNA-based ethnicity estimate will differ from what you see here. To get your personalized ethnicity estimate, order an AncestryDNA® kit.order an AncestryDNA® kit.

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Cliff Family Origin

Where is the Cliff family from?

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You can see how Cliff families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Cliff family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Cliff families were found in the UK in 1891. In 1891 there were 531 Cliff families living in Yorkshire. This was about 20% of all the recorded Cliff's in the UK. Yorkshire had the highest population of Cliff families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Cliff surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

View Census Data for Cliff

Cliff Family Occupations

What did your Cliff ancestors do for a living?

In 1881, the most common Cliff occupation in the UK was Farmer. 5% of Cliff's were Farmers. Farmer, Labourer and Coal Miner were the top 3 reported jobs worked by Cliff. A less common occupation for the Cliff family was Butcher.

View Census data for Cliff | Data not to scale

  • Farmer

    5%

  • Labourer

    4%

  • Coal Miner

    3%

  • Butcher

    2%

Census records can tell you a lot of little known facts about your Cliff ancestors, such as occupation. Occupation can tell you about your ancestor's social and economic status.

Cliff Historical Records

What Cliff family records will you find?

Census Record

There are 64,000 census records available for the last name Cliff. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Cliff census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search 1891 UK census records for Cliff

Passenger List

There are 6,000 immigration records available for the last name Cliff. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Cliff immigration records

Draft Card

There are 8,000 military records available for the last name Cliff. For the veterans among your Cliff ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Cliff military records

You've only scratched the surface of Cliff family history.

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Cliff Life Expectancy

What is the average Cliff lifespan?

Between 1954 and 2004, in the United States, Cliff life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1954, and highest in 1964. The average life expectancy for Cliff in 1954 was 26, and 73 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Cliff

An unusually short lifespan might indicate that your Cliff ancestors lived in harsh conditions. A short lifespan might also indicate health problems that were once prevalent in your family. The SSDI is a searchable database of more than 70 million names. You can find birthdates, death dates, addresses and more.

Famous Cliff Family Ancestors

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