Skip to content
NameBattle
My names

Ekaterina

Feminine · “reshaped as 'pure”

1981high 2005
#5917 in the U.S.given to only a few children a year
rare20 girls in 2025

Ekaterina is the Russian form of Catherine, and the extra vowel at the front is not decoration. Slavic languages dislike certain word-initial clusters and add a vowel to smooth them, which is why the Greek Aikaterine became Ekaterina in Russian and Katarzyna in Polish. Its American peak is 2000, following post-Soviet migration.

How old is the name Ekaterina?

Ekaterina first appears in US birth records in 1981 — 44 years ago. The typical Ekaterina alive today was born around 2008, making them about 17 years old. About 1,000 people named Ekaterina are estimated to be alive in the US today.

When was the name Ekaterina most popular?

Ekaterina peaked in 2000, reaching #3334 nationally. Today it ranks #5917, 2,583 places below that high. See the whole 2000 chart.

Compare this nameMore “E” names

Ekaterina appears on this list:

I

Where it comes from

The story of Ekaterina

Saint Catherine of Alexandria was venerated across the Christian world, and the Eastern church carried her name into Slavic naming as Ekaterina. Two Russian empresses bore it: Catherine I, who succeeded Peter the Great, and Catherine II, who ruled for thirty-four years and is called the Great. That made it one of the most prestigious Russian women's names, and it has remained among the most common. American records show it in small numbers through the twentieth century and rising sharply after 1991, when emigration from the former Soviet Union increased substantially; the peak in 2000 belongs to that arrival.

Meaningscholars disagree

reshaped as 'pure'; the original meaning is unknown

Greek Aikaterine has no secure derivation, and the familiar meaning was attached to it later: early Christian writers connected it to katharos, 'pure', and the spelling shifted accordingly. Russian took the name from Greek through the Byzantine church, keeping the initial vowel that Latin dropped. So Ekaterina is in one respect closer to the Greek than Catherine is, while carrying the same unresolved etymology.

How the name formed

  1. Aikaterine
  2. Ekaterine
  3. Ekaterina

Related forms: Ekaterina · Ekaterina · Ekaterine · Catherine · Katarzyna

Pronouncing Ekaterina

yeh-kah-teh-REE-nah

Five syllables in Russian, stress on the fourth, with the initial e said as ye. English speakers say ek-uh-tuh-REE-nuh, dropping the y glide and reducing the vowels, which is understood everywhere.

Nicknames for Ekaterina

High

KatyaThe standard Russian pet form, used far more than the full name
KatyushaThe affectionate extension, familiar from the wartime song
KateThe English short form, adopted by many bearers in English-speaking countries
RinaTakes the ending, and is a complete name in its own right
II

What the data says

The long climb, and where it stands now

GIRLS NAMED · 1981–202543220432019812025

US babies named Ekaterina per year from 1981 to 2025
AVERAGE RANK BY DECADE#1#10#100#1000#33341980s2020s

The same years in position rather than babies

First recorded
1981
Most girls named
200543 — the highest on record
Peak rank
#3334reached in 2000
Change vs 2024
+17.6%20 in 2025, from 17
Ekaterina sits in the rare tail. Its best year on record was 2005, with 43 girls. Today it is given to few enough children that it does not enter the ranked charts at all.

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.

Ekaterina in other languages

The same name elsewhere

  • Ekaterina in Russian — same name
  • Ekaterina in Bulgarian — same name
  • Ekaterine in Georgian — related form
  • Catherine in English — related form
  • Katarzyna in Polish — related form

Strongest US states over the last decade: Florida, California.

Ekaterinas among us

1,000

people named Ekaterina are estimated to be alive in the US today

About 1 girl in 80,363 born in 2025 was named Ekaterina

Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method

III

Is it right for you

The Lacrisha test

Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Ekaterina's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Lacrisha climbed just as high around 1979, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Lacrisha's path sketches the road Ekaterina is walking now.

40%chance Ekaterina will feel “very 2000s” by 2040
Ekaterina, aligned on its peakLacrisha· peak 1979not yet written
#1#10#100#1000peak-20 yrs+20 yrsLacrisha · #8603Ekaterina today
Ekaterina today is about where Lacrisha stood in 2004 — 25 years past a #3333-sized peak. Within 15 years, Lacrisha had drifted out of the mainstream charts.
Ages quietlysteadyDates fast

Ekaterina sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.

A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored

Ekaterina beside its neighbors

The names ranked closest to Ekaterina in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.

Ekaterinathis name20#5917Elda20#5917Saloma20#5917Fawn20#5917Sarafina20#5917

US girls given each name in 2025.

The trade-off

Practical strengths
  • Katya and Kate give it short forms in two traditions.
  • It is one of the most prestigious names in Russian history.
  • The spelling is phonetic in English and needs no accents.
What to consider
  • Five syllables is long for everyday American use, so a short form is required in practice.
  • It will be shortened to Katherine or Katarina by people writing from dictation.
  • The name's famous meaning, pure, is a later attachment rather than an origin.

Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Ekaterina to the vote.

Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.

Start a family voteSwipe together

Only the people you invite can see your list.

Already decided on Ekaterina? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.

Or just send this page to someone:

WhatsAppPinterestFacebook

What they receive

Someone added a name to your list

Ekaterina

Feminine · #5917 in the U.S.

♥ Love itNot for meLet’s talk about it
Add a note — what do you like about it?
Your shared list is empty. Ekaterina would be the first name on it.

Frequently asked

How many Ekaterinas are there in the world?
No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,000 people named Ekaterina are estimated to be alive in the US today.
How popular is the name Ekaterina in 2025?
Ekaterina ranks #5917 among US girl names in 2025, with 20 babies given the name.
How rare is the name Ekaterina?
About 1 in every 80,363 US girls born in 2025 was named Ekaterina — 20 in all.
Will my child share the name Ekaterina with classmates?
Ekaterina will almost certainly be the only one in school.

Ranked beside Ekaterina

Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.

Elda#5917 · Saloma#5917 · Fawn#5917 · Sarafina#5917 · Jaymie#5917 · Jania#5917 · Kimberlynn#5917 · Patsy#5917

Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Ekaterina? See the current top 100.

Choosing between Ekaterina and another name?

See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.

Compare side by side

In a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.

Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.

Cast your vote

Which one would you pick?

Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.

US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology

No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle