Cleo

About Cleo

Cleo is a short English form of Greek names including Cleopatra, Cleon, and Cleopas. Its shared root is associated with glory. The name has been used for both girls and boys, and its modern cultural connections include jazz singer Cleo Laine and Agnès Varda's film Cléo from 5 to 7.

Greek names behind Cleo

Cleopatra combines Greek words for glory and father, producing glory of the father. The name was borne by several queens of the Ptolemaic dynasty in Egypt, most famously Cleopatra VII.

Cleon comes more directly from kleos, meaning glory. Cleo can therefore belong to a masculine name family as well as to the much better-known Cleopatra connection. Cleopas is another longer form for which it can serve as a familiar name.

The shortened form removes the longer names' different endings and leaves the clear two-syllable opening. French Cléo adds an accent to the spelling, while the unaccented Cleo is familiar in English.

Pronunciation

Cleo is pronounced KLEE-oh, with two syllables and stress on the first. Both vowels remain audible. It is brief enough to function without another nickname, whether registered independently or used as a familiar form of a longer name.

Cleo Laine

British singer Cleo Laine won the 1986 Grammy for Best Jazz Vocal Performance, Female, for Cleo At Carnegie: The 10th Anniversary Concert. Her Recording Academy history also includes nominations in pop and classical vocal categories.

That range gives her musical association with Cleo unusual breadth. Her work was recognized not only in jazz but also through recordings such as a classical program featuring Schoenberg and Ives. The name therefore belongs to a singer whose public career crossed boundaries between musical styles.

Cléo from 5 to 7

Agnès Varda's 1962 film follows a singer played by Corinne Marchand as she moves through Paris while waiting for the results of a biopsy. The film concentrates on a short span of time, making everyday encounters and the passing minutes central to its structure.

The title places Cléo's name at the heart of the work. Its intimate portrait of one woman gives the name a distinct connection with French cinema, quite separate from either the ancient queens or Laine's concert career.

American popularity

Cleo's largest girls' count in the SSA series was 1,049 in 1920. Its best female rank was 171 in 1907. After declining to 66 births in 2000, it rose to 516 in 2025, when it ranked 577.

Boys' use has a longer documented history too: the male series peaked at 363 births in 1918. In 2025 there were 18 boys named Cleo. The recent revival has been much stronger among girls.

How popular is Cleo?

In 2025, Cleo ranked #577 among girls in the United States, with 516 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1880; its largest annual count was 1,049 in 1920. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.