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Cleo

Greek
"glory"
Linda Rosenkrantz
By Linda Rosenkrantz
Updated Mon Jul 14 2025

Cleo Origin and Meaning

The name Cleo is a girl's name of English origin meaning "glory".

Cleo, one of the few girls' names to boast the cool-yet-lively o ending, is of course short for Cleopatra, the name of one of the most powerful women in history.

Cleo was most popular in the early decades of the twentieth century--when it was also used for boys. The opening of the Egyptian tombs along with the 1917 silent film starring Theda Bara popularized a range of now-obscure Cleopatra diminutives, including Cleora, and Cleola.

A distinguished bearer is the British jazz singer Cleo Laine, and there have been Cleos on two TV dramas: ER and Law & Order: Special Victims Unit.

Maybe the fact that Cleo was recently chosen by Friends' David Schwimmer will ignite a welcome revival.

Sound-alike Clio is the name of the ancient Greek mythological muse of history and heroic poetry, one that is rich with modern charm and would also make an intriguing choice,

# 603 in the US

Cleo Rank in US Top 1000

# 121 on Nameberry

Cleo Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Popularity of the name Cleo

20 Names Similar to Cleo

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Cleo.

Famous People Named Cleo

  • Cleo Laine
    Lady Dankworth (born Clementine Dinah Bullock), English jazz singer
  • Miss Cleo (born Youree Dell Harris)
    American psychic
  • Cleopatra Madonna "Cleo" Higgins
    American R&B singer of group Cleopatra
  • Cleo Madison (born Lulu Bailey)
    American silent film actress
  • Cléopatra Diane "Cléo" de Mérode
    French Belle Époque dancer
  • Cleouna "Cleo" Moore
    American actress
  • Cleo
    pseudonym of Clementina Cote, French neo,impressionist painter
  • Cleo
    stage name of Joanna Klepko, Polish pop singer
  • Cleo Page
    Canadian rhythmic gymnast
  • Sheila Lynne "Cleo" Odzer
    American author
  • Cleo Patra Brown
    American jazz singer
  • Cleo Rocos
    Brazilian,British comedienne
  • Cleo Pires (Ayrosa Galvão)
    Brazilian actress
  • (Freda) Cleo (Helwig) Ridgely
    American actress
  • Cleo von Adelsheim
    stage name of Cleopatra Freiin von Adelsheim von Ernest, Hereditary Princess of Oettingen,Oettingen and Oettingen,Spielberg, German,Chilean actress
  • Cleo Ice Queen
    stage name of Clementina Mulenga, Zambian rapper
  • Cleopatra "Cleo" Demetriou
    Cypriot,British actress
  • Cleo Rose Elliott (b. 1984)
    daughter of actors Katharine Ross and Sam Elliott
  • Cleo Bennett (b. 1988)
    daughter of designer Laura Bennett
  • Cleo Buckman Schwimmer (b. 2011)
    daughter of actor David Schwimmer
  • Cleo James Schulman (b. 2016)
    daughter of TV personality Nev Schulman

The name Cleo in Pop Culture

  • Cleo
    fish in Disney's "Pinocchio"
  • Cleo
    purple dog in "Clifford the Big Red Dog" series
  • Cleo Sertori
    mermaid character on Australian TV show "H2O: Just Add Water"
  • Cleo
    main character in "Invisible Sister"
  • Cleopatra "Cleo" McQueen
    character on British soap "Hollyoaks"
  • Cleo
    character in "Toad Patrol"
  • Cleo de Nile
    daughter of the mummies in "Monster High" show and series

The name Cleo in Nameberry Blog Posts