Girl · #188 in 2026

Katherine

Name: Popularity of the name Katherine in U.S. births, 1880–2026
Creator: U.S. Social Security Administration
License: https://www.ssa.gov/foia/
Keywords: Katherine, baby name, popularity, U.S., SSA, rankings

Katherine, also spelled Catherine and other variations, is a feminine given name. The name and its variants are popular in countries where large Christian populations exist, because of its associations with one of the earliest Christian saints, Catherine of Alexandria.

Current Rank

#188

Peak Rank

#25 (1990)

Total Babies

653K

5-Yr Trend

-28%

1880

First Year

2026

Last Year

1990

Peak Year

#25

Peak Rank

653K

Total Count

147

Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Katherine

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

The Story of Katherine

Katherine first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1880, with 502 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1990, when 11,627 Katherines were born — ranking #26 that year. As of 2026, Katherine ranks #188 for baby girls with 1,643 births, falling sharply (-28%). In total, more than 653K Katherines have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

Top 10

11-50

51-100

101-500

500+

No data

Names that sound like Katherine

Phonetically similar names — useful when Katherine is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Katherine

What does the name Katherine mean?

How popular is Katherine in 2026?

In 2026, Katherine ranks #188 among girls' names in the U.S., with 1,643 babies given the name that year.

When was Katherine most popular?

Katherine reached its peak popularity in 1990, ranking #25 that year with 11,627 babies given the name.

In which U.S. states is Katherine most popular?

Katherine has historically been most popular in District of Columbia, Hawaii, Connecticut. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Katherine.

Is Katherine a unisex name?

In U.S. Social Security records, Katherine is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.

What names go well with Katherine?

Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Katherine include Mattie, Thelma, Robin. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Katherine

Katherine is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 653K births in the dataset. Katherine's peak popularity came in 1990 when it ranked #25. Use the chart and map above to compare Katherine's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.