Catlyn
Feminine · “A spelling of Caitlin”
Catlyn is Caitlin written as Cat and Lyn, a spelling of the nineties that hides the Irish name inside two English-looking halves. Its first syllable is the cat of catkin, the soft flower spike that Dutch speakers thought looked like a kitten's tail.
How old is the name Catlyn?
Catlyn first appears in US birth records in 1985 — 40 years ago. The typical Catlyn alive today was born around 1998, making them about 27 years old. About 600 people named Catlyn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Catlyn most popular?
Catlyn peaked in 1996, reaching #3093 nationally. See the whole 1996 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Katherine to Catlyn
The story of Catlyn
Willows and hazels hang out soft, furry flower spikes in early spring, and English borrowed the Dutch katteken, 'little kitten', to name them catkins, after their resemblance to a kitten's tail. Catlyn writes the Irish Caitlín the way English eyes break it up, as Cat and Lyn, and in doing so hides the Irish spelling entirely; it came into American use in the late twentieth century with the rise of Caitlin and its many spellings.
Meaning
A spelling of Caitlin, the Irish form of Catherine
Caitlín is the Irish Catherine; Catlyn writes it as English sees it.
How the name formed
- Katherine
- Caitlín
- Caitlin
- Catlyn
Related forms: Caitlín · Caitlin
Pronouncing Catlyn
KAYT-lin
Two syllables; some families say KAT-lin, as the spelling suggests.
Nicknames for Catlyn
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1985
- Most girls named
- 200041 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #3093reached in 1996
- Change vs 2014
- 0.0%5 in 2018, from 5
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Catlyn in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Caitlín in Irish — related form
- Caitlin in English — spelling variant
Catlyns among us
people named Catlyn are estimated to be alive in the US today
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Catlyn sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Sounds like Caitlin, a name most people know.
- Comes with Cat as a ready short form.
- Easy for English readers to spell.
- The spelling invites KAT-lin, which may not be what the family intends.
- Caitlin, Katelyn and Kaitlyn are the spellings people reach for.
- It is closely tied to its era.
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Catlyn
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Catlyns are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 600 people named Catlyn are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Catlyn in 2025?
- Catlyn is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Catlyn with classmates?
- Catlyn will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More C names
The most-given names starting with C, all years combined.
Carol#2239 · Cynthia#1013 · Catherine#313 · Christine#1272 · Carolyn#1222 · Christina#770 · Charlotte#2 · Cheryl#4352
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Catlyn? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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