Kathryn
Kathryn was the 729th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 381 babies. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked 45th; the most babies were born in 1952 (8,504). Over the last ten years it has moved down 411 places. More babies were named Kathryn in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Meaning variant of Catherine (origin uncertain) · Greek, English
Say it KATH-rin /ˈkæθrɪn/
- Rank in 2025
- #729 girls, down 204 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 381girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19528,504 babies
- Total since 1880
- 456,515babies recorded
What does the name Kathryn mean?
Kathryn is an English spelling of Catherine, as Wiktionary notes. Catherine goes back to Greek Aikaterine. DMNES calls its origin uncertain and says it is unrelated to katharos, pure, though that link later shaped the th spelling. Wiktionary lists other proposals, including the goddess Hecate. The 4th-century martyr Catherine of Alexandria became an extremely popular medieval saint, according to DMNES. Kathryn has been used in the US since 1880.
Αἰκατερίνη (Ancient Greek, “Katherine (origin uncertain)”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. DMNES: origin uncertain.
Other explanations you may read: Means 'pure' (Greek katharos). DMNES says the names are unrelated..
Related names: Catherine, Katherine, Kate, Katie, Kathy.
See also: Greek names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kathryn' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Katherine', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Catherine' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (yob*.txt), team3 computation of first year recorded, US Social Security Administration (public domain)
Nicknames for Kathryn
The usual nicknames for Kathryn are Kate, Katie, Kathy and Kat. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Kathryn in the last five years, 149 were named Kate, against 68 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kate · also for Katherine, Katelyn, Kathleen | Traditional | #522 | 3,241 |
| Katie · also for Katherine, Kate, Kaitlyn | Traditional | #646 | 2,687 |
| Kathy · also for Katherine, Kathleen | Traditional | #3,274 | 319 |
| Kat · also for Katherine, Katrina | Modern | — | — |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Kathryns go by each one.
Kathryn popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 1,092 since 1898.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #729 | 381 |
| 2020 | #525 | 574 |
| 2010 | #230 | 1,370 |
| 2000 | #89 | 3,644 |
| 1990 | #57 | 6,353 |
| 1980 | #50 | 5,527 |
| 1970 | #104 | 3,719 |
| 1960 | #82 | 5,868 |
| 1950 | #46 | 7,863 |
| 1940 | #103 | 2,438 |
| 1930 | #101 | 2,515 |
| 1920 | #67 | 4,082 |
| 1910 | #80 | 1,198 |
| 1900 | #93 | 721 |
| 1890 | #91 | 474 |
| 1880 | #103 | 204 |
How popular is Kathryn, counting every spelling?
Kathryn is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #663 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #729 for Kathryn on its own. Together these spellings went to 431 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kathryn | 381 | #729 | 2,168 |
| Katharine | 27 | #4,935 | 162 |
| Kathrine | 15 | #7,312 | 84 |
| Cathryn | 8 | #11,135 | 83 |
| Kathryne | — | — | 27 |
| Catharine | — | — | 26 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Kathryn?
381 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kathryn (0.11 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Kathryn born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 22 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kathryn.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kathryn?
About 311,300 people born in the US named Kathryn are alive today, with a median age of 49; half are between 35 and 69. That makes Kathryn mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Kathryn by state
How common Kathryn was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Pennsylvania (2.6×), Mississippi (2.6×), South Carolina (2.5×), Alabama (2.5×), Kentucky (2.5×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Jersey, Connecticut, Oregon.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Kathryn: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kathryn, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Kathryn · Sibling names for Kathryn
Questions about the name Kathryn
What does Kathryn mean?
Kathryn is usually explained as “variant of Catherine (origin uncertain)”, but this is uncertain. Certainty: uncertain.
How popular is the name Kathryn?
Kathryn was the 729th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 381 babies. Its best year was 1951, when it ranked 45th; the most babies were born in 1952 (8,504). Over the last ten years it has moved down 411 places. More babies were named Kathryn in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Is Kathryn a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Kathryn in the US.
Where is Kathryn most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kathryn was most common in Pennsylvania (0.69 per 1,000 girls), followed by Mississippi and South Carolina.