# Katherine (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/katherine/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | Greek |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /ˈkæθ(ə)ɹɪn/, 3 syllables |
| Nicknames | Kay, Kit, Kitty, Kate, Kathy, Kati, Katy, Kathi, Katty, Katey |
| Variant spellings | Kathy, Kath, Kate |
| US babies named this | 652,750 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 1,824 / 650,926 (100% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 11,363, 1996 to 2025 |

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 4,189 | 61 |
| 2012 | 3,953 | 64 |
| 2013 | 3,723 | 77 |
| 2014 | 3,691 | 82 |
| 2015 | 3,454 | 84 |
| 2016 | 3,276 | 91 |
| 2017 | 2,861 | 105 |
| 2018 | 2,677 | 112 |
| 2019 | 2,450 | 120 |
| 2020 | 1,991 | 136 |
| 2021 | 1,821 | 157 |
| 2022 | 1,742 | 166 |
| 2023 | 1,705 | 170 |
| 2024 | 1,746 | 175 |
| 2025 | 1,670 | 186 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 13 | 5,033 |
| 1999 | 7 | 8,304 |
| 2000 | 13 | 5,447 |
| 2001 | 14 | 5,281 |
| 2002 | 12 | 5,906 |
| 2003 | 10 | 6,995 |
| 2004 | 32 | 3,115 |
| 2005 | 14 | 5,737 |
| 2006 | 6 | 11,360 |
| 2007 | 7 | 10,349 |
| 2008 | 6 | 11,840 |
| 2009 | 5 | 13,504 |
| 2011 | 5 | 13,352 |
| 2014 | 7 | 10,198 |
| 2015 | 9 | 8,387 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 307 | 169 |
| 2012 | 236 | 213 |
| 2013 | 218 | 230 |
| 2014 | 182 | 265 |
| 2015 | 187 | 263 |
| 2016 | 172 | 290 |
| 2017 | 126 | 369 |
| 2018 | 113 | 392 |
| 2019 | 85 | 485 |
| 2020 | 73 | 545 |
| 2021 | 88 | 478 |
| 2022 | 70 | 559 |
| 2023 | 64 | 592 |
| 2024 | 66 | 594 |
| 2025 | 40 | 872 |

## People named Katherine

- Katherine Johnson, African-American mathematician
- Katherine Heigl, American actress (born 1978)
- Katherine Anne Porter, American journalist, essayist, short story writer, novelist, and political activist (1890–
- Katherine Langford, Australian actress (born 1996)
- Katherine McNamara, American actress (born 1995)
- Katherine Waterston, British-born American actress
- Katherine Moennig, American actress (born 1977)
- Katherine Helmond, American actress (1929–2019)
- Katherine Paterson, American children's writer born and mainly raised in China
- Katherine Dunham, American dancer, choreographer, songwriter, actress and activist (1909/1912–2006)
- Katherine LaNasa, American actress (born 1966)
- Katherine Applegate, American writer

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.