Gender
Origin
- Celtic/Gaelic
- Pure, Virginal
- Irish
- Pure or innocent; variant of Catherine. Bing Crosby crooned the famous ballad, "I''ll Take You Home Again, Kathleen."
Syllables
2
Alternate Spellings and Variants of Kathleen
Famous People
Actress Kathleen Turner, Hollywood producer Kathleen Kennedy
Popularity in the USA
- Boys: peak in 1949 (rank #923, 56 births); most recent 1991 (rank #8232, 5 births)
- Girls: peak in 1951 (rank #10, 26,709 births); most recent 2025 (rank #1150, 201 births)
| Year | Boys | Girls |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | – | 201 |
| 2024 | – | 220 |
| 2023 | – | 248 |
| 2022 | – | 228 |
| 2021 | – | 262 |
| 2020 | – | 253 |
| 2019 | – | 280 |
| 2018 | – | 306 |
| 2017 | – | 314 |
| 2016 | – | 340 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in the USA (2025)
Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA), national baby names data (public domain). This site is not affiliated with or endorsed by the SSA. Data years: 1880 to 2025. Original data
Popularity in England and Wales
- Girls: peak in 1996 (rank #227, 179 births); most recent 2025 (rank #997, 34 births)
| Year | Girls |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 34 |
| 2024 | 33 |
| 2023 | 36 |
| 2022 | 45 |
| 2021 | 35 |
| 2020 | 45 |
| 2019 | 32 |
| 2018 | 40 |
| 2017 | 58 |
| 2016 | 39 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in England and Wales (2025)
Source: Office for National Statistics (ONS), Baby names in England and Wales. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data years: 1996 to 2025. Original data · Licence
Popularity in France
- Girls: peak in 1990 (rank #220, 263 births); most recent 2023 (rank #2256, 12 births)
| Year | Girls |
|---|---|
| 2023 | 12 |
| 2022 | 19 |
| 2021 | 38 |
| 2020 | 24 |
| 2019 | 30 |
| 2018 | 35 |
| 2017 | 35 |
| 2016 | 38 |
| 2015 | 44 |
| 2014 | 47 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in France (2023)
Source: INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (last updated 8 July 2024), used under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0. Changes: names are shown in title case, and spellings that differ only by accents are counted together. Data years: 1900 to 2023. Original data · Licence
Popularity in Ireland
- Girls: peak in 1965 (rank #18, 319 births); most recent 2025 (rank #353, 11 births)
| Year | Girls |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 11 |
| 2024 | 22 |
| 2023 | 22 |
| 2022 | 28 |
| 2021 | 24 |
| 2020 | 12 |
| 2019 | 32 |
| 2018 | 25 |
| 2017 | 23 |
| 2016 | 22 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in Ireland (2025)
Source: Central Statistics Office (CSO), Ireland, Irish Babies' Names (tables VSA50 and VSA60), licensed under CC BY 4.0. Changes: spellings that differ only by accents (for example Rian and Rían) are counted together. Data years: 1964 to 2025. Original data · Licence
Popularity in Scotland
- Girls: peak in 1974 (rank #62, 143 births); most recent 2025 (rank #632, 4 births)
| Year | Girls |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 4 |
| 2024 | – |
| 2023 | – |
| 2022 | – |
| 2021 | – |
| 2020 | – |
| 2019 | 4 |
| 2018 | – |
| 2017 | 6 |
| 2016 | 6 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in Scotland (2025)
Source: National Records of Scotland (NRS), Babies' First Names. © Crown copyright. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data years: 1974 to 2025. Original data · Licence
Popularity in Northern Ireland
- Girls: peak in 1997 (rank #112, 20 births); most recent 2025 (rank #334, 4 births)
| Year | Girls |
|---|---|
| 2025 | 4 |
| 2024 | 3 |
| 2023 | 3 |
| 2022 | – |
| 2021 | – |
| 2020 | 4 |
| 2019 | 4 |
| 2018 | 6 |
| 2017 | – |
| 2016 | 4 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in Northern Ireland (2025)
Source: Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA), Baby Names. © Crown copyright. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Data years: 1997 to 2025. Original data · Licence
Popularity in British Columbia (Canada)
- Girls: peak in 1958 (rank #12, 234 births); most recent 2018 (rank #461, 8 births)
| Year | Girls |
|---|---|
| 2023 | – |
| 2022 | – |
| 2021 | – |
| 2020 | – |
| 2019 | – |
| 2018 | 8 |
| 2017 | – |
| 2016 | 5 |
| 2015 | – |
| 2014 | 10 |
Top girl names · Top boy names in British Columbia (Canada) (2023)
Source: British Columbia Vital Statistics Agency, Most popular baby names for the past 100 years. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – British Columbia. Changes: names are shown in title case. Data years: 1924 to 2023. Original data · Licence