Names from Children’s Literature – Clifford

Clifford the Big Red Dog, created by illustrator Norman Bridwell in 1962, was featured first in books and later on television.

Clifford actually began life as the runt of the litter. He soon grew to an exceptional size (over 25 feet high) and became the “biggest, reddest dog” on the block.

Ironically, Bridwell did not want to name the dog Clifford at first:

I wanted to call the dog ‘Tiny,’ but Norma (his wife) said that was boring and suggested ‘Clifford’ after an imaginary friend from her childhood.

The name Clifford comes from a surname that (in turn) can be traced back to any of several English place names meaning, simply, “ford by a cliff.”

The name was one of the top 100 in the nation until about 1950. Since then, it has been declining in popularity — slowly until about 1980, and then rather quickly after that point.