Catherine

Meaning: Uncertain; possibly each of the two, traditionally linked to pure
Origin: Greek

Nicknames: Katie, Cathy, Cat, Cate, Catie

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

Popularity over time

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.

Across the states

See where Catherine is more common.

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

Around the world

See how Catherine ranks in other countries and regions.

#259 in N. Ireland (2025) · #273 in Ireland (2025) · #367 in Mexico (2024) · #387 in Scotland (2025) · #450 in Canada (2025) · #590 in England & Wales (2025) · #744 in Poland (2025) · #856 in Belgium (2025) · #1,128 in France (2025) · #1,247 in Italy (2024) · #1,407 in Austria (2025) · #1,482 in Switzerland (2025) and 8 more.

Famous Catherines

Catherine II of Russia — Empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796 (1729–1796)
Catherine Zeta-Jones — British actress (born 1969)
Catherine Deneuve — French actress (born 1943)
Catherine de' Medici — Queen of France from 1547 to 1559 (1519–1589)
Catherine of Aragon — First wife of Henry VIII of England (1485–1536)
Catherine O'Hara — Canadian and American actress (1954–2026)
Catherine Howard — Queen of England from 1540 to 1541 (1524–1542)
Catherine Connolly — President of Ireland since 2025 (born 1955)
Catherine Parr — Queen of England and Ireland from 1543 to 1547 (1512–1548)
Catherine of Siena — Italian Dominican philosopher and saint (1347–1380)

In stories & tradition

Catherine Willows — Fictional character on American television series CSI: Crime Scene Investigation
Catherine Earnshaw — Character in Wuthering Heights
Catherine Tramell — Basic Instinct character

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, engineer and USAF colonel (born 1960).

Spellings & nicknames

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.

About 540 girls a year are given Katie as their full name.

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

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

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Service