Cathren
A feminine name of Celtic origin meaning "pure, virginal".
Name Census estimates that about 21 living Americans carry the first name Cathren. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cathren today is around 74 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cathren births was 1920 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cathren. 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
- • The typical person named Cathren is about 74 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Cathrens were born before 1962.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Cathren. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
21
~ 1 in 16,321,635 Americans
Peak year
1920
7 babies that year
Average age
74
years old
1964 SSA rank
#6,892
Tracked since 1916
Popularity
Cathren: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cathren from the 1910s through to the 1960s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 24 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cathren 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 Cathren during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cathren
The name Cathren has its roots in the ancient Celtic culture, originating from the Irish Gaelic "Caitríona," which itself is derived from the Greek name "Katharina." This name can be traced back to the late 4th century AD, when it was first recorded in historical texts.
One of the earliest documented individuals with the name Cathren was Saint Cathren of Alexandria, a Christian martyr who lived in the early 4th century AD. According to legend, she was a highly educated young woman who publicly defied the Roman Emperor Maxentius and his attempts to enforce pagan worship. For her unwavering faith, she was brutally tortured and eventually executed around the year 307 AD.
In the 12th century, a notable figure named Cathren de Bohun was born into a powerful Anglo-Norman noble family in England. She was the wife of Hubert de Burgh, a prominent statesman and justiciar who served under King John and King Henry III. Cathren de Bohun played a significant role in the political affairs of her time and was known for her influence and resourcefulness.
During the 16th century, Cathren Kocher, a German Anabaptist, gained recognition for her unwavering commitment to her faith. She was arrested and imprisoned multiple times for her religious beliefs, ultimately being burned at the stake in 1538 for refusing to renounce her Anabaptist convictions.
In the realm of literature, Cathren Mackinnon, a Scottish poet and writer, made her mark in the late 18th century. Born in 1767, she published several works that celebrated Scottish culture and traditions, including "The Days of the Feudal System" and "The Highland Harp."
Another prominent figure with the name Cathren was Cathren Parr Traill, a British-Canadian author, and naturalist. Born in 1802, she emigrated to Upper Canada (now Ontario) in 1832 and became a pioneering writer, documenting the natural history and daily life of the early settlers in the region through her numerous publications.
People
Cathren + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cathren 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
Cathren: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cathren?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 21 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cathren 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 16,321,635 US residents.
Is Cathren a common name?
We classify Cathren as "Very Rare". It ranks above 40.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 69 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cathren most popular?
The single biggest year for Cathren was 1920, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cathren is about 74 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Cathren a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cathren 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.