Kathy
Kathy was the 3274th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 48 babies. Its best year was 1958, when it ranked 14th with 23,938 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 1,584 places. More babies were named Kathy in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Meaning pet form of Katherine or Kathleen · English, Greek
Say it KATH-ee /ˈkæθi/
- Rank in 2025
- #3,274 girls, down 1,091 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 48girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 195823,938 babies
- Total since 1880
- 334,870babies recorded
What does the name Kathy mean?
Kathy is a pet form of Katherine and Kathleen, from Kath with the -y ending, as Wiktionary notes; it is also used as a formal name. Katherine comes from Greek Aikaterinē, of uncertain origin; DMNES notes it is unrelated to katharos 'pure', though the spelling with th was influenced by that word. Kathy was very common in the US in the 1950s.
Αἰκατερίνη (Aikaterinē) (Ancient Greek, “Catherine”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Katherine, Kathleen, Cathy, Kate, Katie.
See also: Greek names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Kathy', 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)
Kathy popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 739 since 1942.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #3,274 | 48 |
| 2020 | #2,183 | 83 |
| 2010 | #1,261 | 190 |
| 2000 | #652 | 379 |
| 1990 | #504 | 477 |
| 1980 | #255 | 1,010 |
| 1970 | #77 | 4,797 |
| 1960 | #21 | 18,478 |
| 1950 | #38 | 9,090 |
| 1940 | #256 | 604 |
| 1930 | #1,446 | 29 |
| 1920 | #3,226 | 10 |
| 1910 | #2,594 | 5 |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Kathy, counting every spelling?
Kathy is the most common spelling of a name family that had 60 girls in 2025 across its spellings. Together these spellings went to 60 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Kathy | 48 | #3,274 | 319 |
| Cathy | 12 | #8,463 | 99 |
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 Kathy?
48 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Kathy (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Kathy 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 175 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Kathy.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Kathy?
About 271,600 people born in the US named Kathy are alive today, with a median age of 67; half are between 62 and 71. That makes Kathy a name most people associate with older generations.
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.
Kathy by state
How common Kathy was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in California (2.0×). In 44 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Kathy: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Kathy, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Kathy · Sibling names for Kathy
Kathy is also a nickname for Katherine, Kathryn and Kathleen.
Questions about the name Kathy
What does Kathy mean?
Kathy means “pet form of Katherine or Kathleen” (English, Greek origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Kathy?
Kathy was the 3274th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 48 babies. Its best year was 1958, when it ranked 14th with 23,938 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 1,584 places. More babies were named Kathy in the 1950s than in any other decade.
Is Kathy a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Kathy in the US.
Where is Kathy most popular?
In 2021–2025, Kathy was most common in California (0.08 per 1,000 girls), followed by Ohio and Pennsylvania.