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Kathy

KATH-ee /ˈkæθi/

At a glance

In short
Kathy is a crisp, mid-century nickname for Katherine, itself rooted in the Greek Aikaterine and traditionally translated as “pure.”
U.S. rank 2025
#3,249 of girl names (outside the top 1,000)
Babies in 2025
48 (<0.01% of girls)
Trend
Slipping #2,170 in 2020 #3,249 in 2025
Peak
#14 in 1958
First recorded
1910

Meaning of Kathy

Kathy is a crisp, mid-century nickname for Katherine, itself rooted in the Greek Aikaterine and traditionally translated as “pure.” Pronounced KATH-ee, it slipped into common use during the post-war baby boom, vaulting from relative obscurity in the 1940s to a Top-25 mainstay by 1961—after which its graph shows the kind of steady descent statisticians politely call “negative slope.” Today it resides in the high-800s, a quiet reminder that fashion never stands still. Culturally, Kathy carries a pleasantly down-to-earth vibe, helped along by straight-shooting public figures such as Oscar-winner Kathy Bates and dry-witted comedian Kathy Griffin; their success keeps the name from feeling moth-balled. Despite its diminutive form, Kathy holds its own, offering parents a ready-made first name that needs no formal expansion and no phonetic explanation. In short, it’s a vintage badge of mid-century optimism—perhaps past its commercial peak, yet still entirely serviceable for anyone who enjoys a touch of retro charm without the maintenance schedule of true antiquity.

How to pronounce Kathy

English

Popularity of Kathy in the U.S.

Kathy was the #3,249 girl name in the U.S. in 2025, with 48 babies. It peaked at #14 in 1958. It first appears in the records in 1910.

Bar and line chart: Kathy in the U.S., 1910–2025. Bars: girls given the name each year, most 23,938 in 1958 and 48 in 2025. Line: rank among girl names, peak #14 in 1958, #3,249 in 2025.
  • Girls named Kathy (left scale)
  • Rank among U.S. girl names (right scale, #1 at the top)
By year, 1910–2025. Source: SSA. Download: PNG · SVG
Year-by-year table, 1910⁠–⁠2025 113 rows
YearBabiesRankvs previous year
2025483,249▼ 555
2024642,694▲ 129
2023602,823▼ 398
2022752,425▲ 35
2021722,460▼ 290
2020832,170▲ 185
2019762,355▼ 257
2018912,098▼ 256
20171111,842▼ 396
20161591,446▲ 239
20151261,685▼ 151
20141421,534▲ 23
20131391,557▼ 223
20121761,334▲ 14
20111711,348▼ 88
20101901,260▼ 42
20092041,218▼ 227
2008268991▼ 70
2007294921▼ 18
2006294903▼ 20
2005286883▼ 14
2004283869▼ 66
2003308803▼ 110
2002362693▲ 22
2001343715▼ 63
2000379652▼ 5
1999361647▼ 29
1998386618▼ 28
1997389590▼ 60
1996445530▲ 34
1995409564▼ 25
1994455539–
1993444539▼ 32
1992474507▼ 4
1991472503▲ 1
1990477504▼ 2
1989469502▼ 67
1988522435▼ 2
1987517433▼ 36
1986572397▼ 27
1985617370▼ 27
1984670343▼ 40
1983765303▼ 26
1982879277▼ 19
1981956258▼ 3
19801,010255▼ 21
19791,112234▼ 13
19781,134221▼ 31
19771,406190▼ 4
19761,382186▼ 26
19751,689160▼ 14
19741,920146▼ 22
19732,371124▼ 16
19723,032108▼ 17
19713,86391▼ 14
19704,79777–
19694,75177▼ 1
19684,67776▼ 12
19675,40664▼ 5
19666,31959▼ 5
19657,76254▼ 15
196410,37739▼ 5
196312,21534▼ 7
196214,75727▼ 2
196116,38525▼ 4
196018,47821▼ 6
195921,81415▼ 1
195823,93814▲ 6
195720,23720–
195617,17720▲ 2
195515,32422▲ 1
195414,17523–
195313,40023▲ 6
195212,36929▲ 6
195110,40635▲ 3
19509,09038▲ 4
19498,45142▲ 13
19486,14855▲ 9
19475,69764▲ 15
19464,17979▲ 22
19452,753101▲ 9
19442,417110▲ 26
19432,033136▲ 23
19421,537159▲ 40
1941947199▲ 57
1940604256▲ 72
1939365328▲ 98
1938246426▲ 100
1937157526▲ 36
1936136562▲ 102
193599664▲ 87
193479751▲ 287
1933451,038▼ 115
193258923▲ 204
1931401,127▲ 307
1930291,434▼ 177
1929351,257▲ 766
1928182,023▼ 661
1927351,362▼ 5
1926341,357▲ 2,005
192593,362▼ 701
1924132,661▲ 71
1923122,732▼ 546
1922172,186▲ 192
1921152,378▲ 719
1920103,097▼ 284
1919112,813▲ 699
191883,512▼ 168
191783,344▼ 86
191683,258▼ 570
1915102,688▲ 188
191472,876back
191052,398new

Kathy by state

Kathy ranks #1,392 in Pennsylvania (2025).

Map: Kathy's 2025 rank among girl names in each U.S. state
Rank among girl names by state, 2025. Source: SSA. Download: PNG · SVG
Rank by state 2 states
StateRankBabies
Pennsylvania1,3925
California2,0939

Notable people named Kathy

  • Kathy Hochul — Kathleen Hochul is an American politician and lawyer who became New York's first female governor in 2021.
  • Kathleen Mary Griffin, known as Kathy Griffin, is an American comedian and actress who won two Emmy Awards for her reality show My Life on the D-List.
  • Kathy Mattea — Kathleen Alice Mattea is an American country and bluegrass singer known for her four number one hits and two Grammy Awards.
  • Kathy Bates — Kathleen Doyle Bates is an American actress and director whose five-decade career has earned her an Oscar, two Emmys, and two Golden Globes.
  • Kathy Ireland is an American former supermodel, actress, and entrepreneur who founded the successful brand Kathy Ireland Worldwide.
More people named Kathy 10 more
  • Kathy Valentine — Kathryn Valentine is an American musician best known as the bassist for the Go-Go's, with whom she entered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2021.
  • Kathy Dahlkemper — Kathleen Ann Dahlkemper is an American Democratic politician who served in Congress and as Erie County executive in Pennsylvania.
  • Kathy Lueders — Kathryn Lueders is an American engineer who became the first woman to lead NASA's human spaceflight program.
  • Kathy Hilton — Kathleen Elizabeth Hilton is an American socialite, designer, actress, and television personality, and the mother of Paris and Nicky Hilton.
  • Kathy Butler is a Scottish-born long-distance runner who has represented Great Britain, Scotland and Canada internationally.
  • Kathy Davis — Katherine L. Davis is an American politician and entrepreneur who became Indiana's first female lieutenant governor.
  • Kathy Sledge is an American singer, songwriter and producer who rose to fame in the 1970s with Sister Sledge.
  • Kathy Calvin — Kathryn Bushkin Calvin led the United Nations Foundation as president and CEO from 2013 to 2019.
  • Kathy Clark is an American bestselling romance author who also writes as Kris Cassidy and Bob Kat.
  • Kathy Stinson is a Canadian author of children's books.