Clare

name

1. A surname from Old English derived from Old English clǣġ (“clay”) as an occupational name for a worker in clay.
2. A male given name transferred from the surname, of quite uncommon usage.

noun

Etymology: Medieval English vernacular form of Clara, from the Latin clara, feminine of clarus (“bright, shining, clear”), a post-classical name made famous by the 13th century Saint Clara of Assisi. In Oxfordshire, from Clarora, a clay slope.

1. Synonym of Poor Clare: a nun of the Order of Saint Clare.

   “The chief house of the Clares in England stood near Aldgate; it was built by Blanche, queen of Navarre, and her husband Edmund, earl of Lancaster, Leicester and Darby, son to Henry III. and brother to Edward I. These nuns were Urbanists, and enjoyed revenues. They were called Clares or Minoresses, and their house the Minories...”