Kathleen
Girl nameKathleen has been given to 715,336 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It peaked in 1951. In 2025, about 1 in 7,996 girls was named Kathleen.
Meaning & origin /ˈkæθˌlin/
Anglicization of Caitlín, an Irish equivalent of the English Catherine.
Origin: Irish
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Popularity over time births per year, 1880–2025
Total babies
715,336
Peak year
1951 (26,749 babies)
Rank in 2025
Below top 1000
First recorded
1880
10-year trend
▼ -41%
Gender split
100% girls / 0% boys
Rank through the decades
Kathleen's rank among U.S. girl names at 25-year milestones.
| Year | Girls rank |
|---|---|
| 1900 | #171 |
| 1925 | #81 |
| 1950 | #10 |
| 1975 | #80 |
| 2000 | #204 |
— means outside the top 1000 that year.
Spellings & variants
Names one letter away from Kathleen — alternate spellings parents actually use.
Famous people named Kathleen
Kathy Bates
American film actress and director
Kathleen Turner
American actress (born 1954)
Katie Ledecky
American Olympic swimmer
Kate Capshaw
American actress who converted to Judaism
Notability data from Wikidata (CC0).
Names with a similar vibe
Same primary gender, peaked around the same years, and roughly as common as Kathleen.
713,412 babies since 1880
726,130 babies since 1900
744,478 babies since 1880
669,611 babies since 1880
610,597 babies since 1897
825,584 babies since 1880
596,462 babies since 1895
588,495 babies since 1880
Sibling name ideas for Kathleen
Same era and popularity as Kathleen, avoiding matching initials or rhymes.
FAQ
How popular is the name Kathleen?
Kathleen has been given to 715,336 babies in the U.S. since 1880. It ranked below the top 1000 in 2025.
When did the name Kathleen peak?
Kathleen peaked in 1951, when 26,749 babies were given the name.
Is Kathleen a girl or boy name?
Kathleen is primarily a girl name (100% of babies named Kathleen are girls).
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