Cate
Pure, virtuous, or innocent; a variant of Katherine.
Name Census estimates that about 1,754 living Americans carry the first name Cate. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cate today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cate births was 2008 (152 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cate. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Cate is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 18 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
1.8K
~ 1 in 195,413 Americans
Peak year
2008
152 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,034
Tracked since 1980
Popularity
Cate: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cate from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 932 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cate by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Cate during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cates live
The SSA's state-level files cover 22 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Cate, while Virginia, Tennessee, Oklahoma recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 29 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cate
The given name Cate has its origins traced back to ancient Greece and the Greek word "katharos", meaning "pure" or "clear". It is a shortened form of the name Catherine, which was derived from the Greek name Aikaterine. The name Catherine was later influenced by the Latin word "katharios", also meaning "pure".
In the early Christian era, the name Catherine gained popularity due to its association with St. Catherine of Alexandria, a renowned 4th-century Christian martyr. Her legendary story of defying the Roman emperor Maxentius and her subsequent execution for refusing to renounce her faith made her a highly revered figure in Christianity.
The earliest recorded examples of the name Cate can be found in medieval England, where it was often used as a diminutive form of Catherine. During the Renaissance period, the name gained further popularity across Europe, particularly in countries with strong Catholic traditions, such as Italy and Spain.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Cate. One of the earliest recorded examples is Cate Belet, a 13th-century noblewoman from England who played a significant role in the defense of Corfe Castle during the Second Barons' War (1264-1267).
Another famous bearer of the name was Cate of Alzano (c. 1284-1384), an Italian mystic and religious figure known for her visions and spiritual writings. She is revered as a patron saint of the town of Alzano Lombardo in northern Italy.
In the 16th century, Cate Blanchflower (c. 1520-1590) was a prominent English herbalist and apothecary, renowned for her extensive knowledge of medicinal plants and her contributions to the field of herbal medicine.
During the 17th century, Cate Beatrix (1624-1705) was a Dutch Golden Age painter known for her exquisite still-life paintings and her role in promoting the genre in the Netherlands.
More recently, Cate Blanchett (born 1969) is a renowned Australian actress and director, celebrated for her performances in films such as "Elizabeth", "The Lord of the Rings" trilogy, and "Carol". She has won numerous awards, including two Academy Awards, three British Academy Film Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Cate
People
Cate + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cate as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cate: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cate?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,754 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cate going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 195,413 US residents.
Is Cate a common name?
We classify Cate as "Rare". It ranks above 93.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,778 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cate most popular?
The single biggest year for Cate was 2008, when 152 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cate is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Cate a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cate in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.