The name Clive is a boy's name of English origin meaning "lives near a high cliff". Clive and is often added to lists like Boy Names That Mean Life and discussed in our forums with posts like "Picky Parents BNG".
From the experts:
Clive used to be stereotyped as a clipped British name in a pith helmet and pencil-thin moustache, as in English military hero Clive of India--but this image has been turned on its ear by hunky Clive Owen.
William Makepeace Thackeray did a lot to launch this as a first name via his novel The Newcomes with Clive Newcombe being the hero--most likely inspired by the exploits of General Robert Clive, essentially the founder of British India.
Two other notable modern day Clives are writers Barker and Cussler.
Clive in Blog Posts
Clive in the Forums
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Clive is a clipped, simple and sophisticated, perfect for those who want strong handsome to-the-point names like Grant, Dean, Clark. I've always associated this prim-and-proper buttoned-up name with a British James-Bond-like dapper brown-haired man in his forties- basically Clive Owen, I guess. It also sounds like the name of a herb to me, I think because of it looks similar to chives.