Ekaterina
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "pure" or "unblemished".
Name Census estimates that about 967 living Americans carry the first name Ekaterina. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Ekaterina today is around 18 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ekaterina births was 2005 (43 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ekaterina. 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.
People living today
967
~ 1 in 354,451 Americans
Peak year
2005
43 babies that year
Average age
18
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,684
Tracked since 1981
Popularity
Ekaterina: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ekaterina 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 375 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
Ekaterina 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 Ekaterina during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ekaterinas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, Florida, New York recorded the most babies named Ekaterina, while Washington, Massachusetts, New York recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 37 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ekaterina
Ekaterina is a Russian given name derived from the Greek name Aikaterina, meaning "pure". It originated from the Greek word "katharos", meaning "pure" or "clean". The name gained popularity in Russia after the introduction of Christianity in the 10th century.
The earliest recorded use of the name Ekaterina can be traced back to the 4th century, when Saint Catherine of Alexandria, a Christian martyr, lived. She is considered one of the most influential figures in the early Christian Church and is revered as the patron saint of philosophers, preachers, and theologians.
One of the most famous historical figures with the name Ekaterina was Catherine the Great, the Empress of Russia from 1762 to 1796. She was born in 1729 as Sophie Friederike Auguste von Anhalt-Zerbst and took the name Ekaterina upon her conversion to the Russian Orthodox faith. Her reign is considered one of the most significant in Russian history, marked by territorial expansion, cultural achievements, and the promotion of Enlightenment ideals.
Another notable Ekaterina was Ekaterina Mikhailovna Dolgorukova (1847-1922), a Russian writer and translator. She is best known for her translations of works by Charles Dickens, William Shakespeare, and other English authors into Russian.
In the 20th century, Ekaterina Maximova (1939-2009) was a renowned Russian ballerina and choreographer. She was a prima ballerina of the Bolshoi Ballet and later became the artistic director of the Vaganava Ballet Academy.
Ekaterina Gordeeva (born in 1971) is a Russian figure skater who, together with her late husband Sergei Grinkov, won two Olympic gold medals in pairs figure skating in 1988 and 1994. Their partnership and success on the ice made them icons of the sport.
While the name Ekaterina has its roots in Greek and Christian traditions, it has become a widely recognized and beloved name in Russia and the Eastern Orthodox world, with numerous notable historical figures bearing this name throughout the centuries.
People
Ekaterina + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ekaterina as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ekaterina: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ekaterina?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 967 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ekaterina 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 354,451 US residents.
Is Ekaterina a common name?
We classify Ekaterina as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 982 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ekaterina most popular?
The single biggest year for Ekaterina was 2005, when 43 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ekaterina is about 18 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ekaterina a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ekaterina 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.