Katja
A feminine name of German or Russian origin meaning "pure".
Name Census estimates that about 908 living Americans carry the first name Katja. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Katja today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Katja births was 1998 (48 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Katja. 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
908
~ 1 in 377,483 Americans
Peak year
1998
48 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,641
Tracked since 1963
Popularity
Katja: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Katja from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 253 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Katja 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 Katja during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Katjas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, New York, Texas recorded the most babies named Katja, while Texas, New York, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 20 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Katja
The name Katja is a diminutive form of the name Katharina, which is derived from the Greek name Aikaterine. Aikaterine itself comes from the combination of the Greek words "katharos" meaning "pure" and "agen" meaning "born." The name Katharina was initially popular in the Byzantine Empire and later spread throughout Europe during the Middle Ages.
The earliest recorded use of the diminutive form Katja can be traced back to the 16th century in Slavic-speaking regions such as Russia and Poland. It became a common pet name or nickname for Katharina, particularly in Eastern Europe. Over time, Katja evolved into a standalone given name in its own right.
In the 17th century, a notable figure bearing the name Katja was Katja Michailova (1629-1694), a Russian folk singer and performer. Her fame helped popularize the name further in Russia and neighboring regions.
Another historical figure was Katja Leitner (1878-1942), an Austrian painter and graphic artist. She was a prominent figure in the Viennese Secession movement and is renowned for her portraits and etchings.
In the 20th century, Katja Riemann (born 1963) is a well-known German actress who has appeared in numerous films and television shows. She has won several awards, including the Bavarian Film Award for Best Actress.
Katja Ebstein (born 1945) is a German singer and songwriter who has had a successful career spanning over five decades. She has represented Germany in the Eurovision Song Contest twice and has released numerous hit albums.
Katja Kipping (born 1978) is a German politician who served as the co-chair of the political party Die Linke from 2012 to 2021. She has been a prominent figure in left-wing politics in Germany and has advocated for social and environmental causes.
People
Katja + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Katja as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with K
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Katja: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Katja?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 908 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Katja 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 377,483 US residents.
Is Katja a common name?
We classify Katja as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 944 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Katja most popular?
The single biggest year for Katja was 1998, when 48 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Katja is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Katja a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Katja 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.