Catherine

“Debated; possibly 'each of the two' (Greek), popularly linked to 'pure'” — Greek via French origin

Girl's name · #314 in the US (2025) · Timeless

Catherine has held steady since 1880, standing at #314 in 2025. It held the national top 100 for more than a century without a break. Catherine's short forms are Katie, Cathy, Cat, Cate, and Catie. About 540 girls a year are given Katie as their full name. Together with its spelling variants Katherine (#186) and Kathryn (#729), Catherine would rank around #82 with about 3,000 births last year — the newborns split about 55/32/13 across Katherine, Catherine, and Kathryn.

Around the world: about 1 in 1,200 girls in N. Ireland (2025) · about 1 in 1,400 girls in Ireland (2025) · about 1 in 2,100 girls in Canada (2024).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 39 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Catherines

Catherine II of Russia — eighth Emperor of Russia, called the Great, r. 1762–1796 (lived 1729-1796)
Catherine Zeta-Jones — British actress
Catherine Deneuve — French actress (born 1943)
Catherine de' Medici — queen-consort and regent of France (1519–1589)
Catherine of Aragon — first wife of Henry VIII of England (1485–1536)

In stories & tradition

Catherine Willows — CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Catherine Earnshaw — Wuthering Heights
Catherine Tramell — Basic Instinct · Basic Instinct 2

What Catherines become

Among 3,919 notable people named Catherine:

Scientists & scholars appear 1.29× more often than among typical names — e.g. Catherine Coleman, American astronaut, chemist, United States Air Force officer.

Similar names: Katherine · Anne · Kathryn · Jacqueline · Frances · Corinne

Browse more girl names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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