Katrin
A feminine name of Greek origin meaning "pure".
Name Census estimates that about 999 living Americans carry the first name Katrin. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Katrin today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Katrin births was 1977 (37 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Katrin. 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
999
~ 1 in 343,097 Americans
Peak year
1977
37 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2023 SSA rank
#16,352
Tracked since 1951
Popularity
Katrin: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Katrin from the 1950s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 208 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Katrin 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 Katrin during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Katrins live
Origin
Meaning and history of Katrin
The name Katrin has its origins in the ancient Greek language. It is a feminine form of the name Katharos, which means "pure" or "clear." The name first appeared in written records during the Byzantine era, around the 5th century AD, when it was used by Greek-speaking Christians living in the Eastern Roman Empire.
In the Middle Ages, the name spread to other parts of Europe, particularly in regions with strong Greek cultural influences, such as Italy and parts of Eastern Europe. One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was Saint Katrin of Vadstena, a 14th-century Swedish mystic and writer.
The name Katrin has been used throughout history by various notable figures. One of the most famous was Katrin the Great, the 18th-century Empress of Russia (1729-1796), who is renowned for her military conquests, cultural achievements, and efforts to modernize Russia.
Another prominent historical figure with the name Katrin was Katrin of Aragon (1485-1536), the first wife of King Henry VIII of England. Despite her failure to produce a male heir, Katrin was a highly educated and influential queen consort during the early years of the English Reformation.
In the world of literature, the name Katrin is associated with Katrin Mansfield (1888-1923), the celebrated New Zealand-born writer and pioneer of the modern short story. Her works, such as "The Garden Party" and "Miss Brill," are widely studied and admired for their innovative style and psychological depth.
The name Katrin has also been borne by notable artists, such as Katrin Kollwitz (1867-1945), a German painter and printmaker renowned for her poignant depictions of the hardships faced by the working class during the early 20th century.
Another historical figure with the name Katrin was Katrin the Great (1020-1083), a Byzantine empress who played a crucial role in the consolidation of the Macedonian dynasty and the expansion of the Byzantine Empire in the 11th century.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Katrin
People
Katrin + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Katrin 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
Katrin: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Katrin?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 999 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Katrin 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 343,097 US residents.
Is Katrin a common name?
We classify Katrin as "Very Rare". It ranks above 90.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,091 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Katrin most popular?
The single biggest year for Katrin was 1977, when 37 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Katrin is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Katrin a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Katrin 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.