Katharine
Meaning
traditionally 'pure'
Katharine around the world
One shared root links 26 names across 8 languages.
Shared root: from Greek Aikaterine, linked since early Christian times to katharos "pure", though the name's true origin predates that folk etymology
The constellation
18 more branches of this family
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Katharine peaked in the 1890s and the 2000s in nearly equal measure.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
766 people · the #9,946 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 250,000 · median age 23
Among people named Katharine living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
The census also counted 80 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Katharine
Most people given the name Katharine in the United States were born between 1960 and 1999. The Katharine you meet today is most often in her 30s or 40s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Katharine deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Katharine truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Katharine fits with your family’s names and surname.
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