Kathaleen
Feminine · “pure”
Kathaleen writes out a vowel that Kathleen only implies: three syllables on the page where the usual spelling gives two. It appears in American records at the turn of the twentieth century, in the decades when Irish songs were being played on every parlour piano in the country.
How old is the name Kathaleen?
Kathaleen first appears in US birth records in 1902 — 123 years ago. The typical Kathaleen alive today was born around 1950, making them about 75 years old. About 2,500 people named Kathaleen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kathaleen most popular?
Kathaleen peaked in 1952, reaching #741 nationally. See the whole 1952 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Aikaterine to Kathaleen
The story of Kathaleen
Two songs did more than anything else to put Kathleen into American mouths. Kathleen Mavourneen was written in London in 1837 and became a fixture of the concert and minstrel stage on both sides of the Atlantic; I'll Take You Home Again, Kathleen followed in 1875, written, despite everything the title suggests, by an American schoolteacher of German descent who had never been to Ireland. Both were still being sung when Kathaleen first appears in the record. The extra vowel is an American addition. Ireland does not use it, and the spelling has never crossed back.
Meaningscholars disagree
pure
The Katherine names are traditionally read as pure, from the Greek katharos, but that reading was attached to the name long after it was in use, and the original Aikaterine has no agreed source. Kathleen inherits the argument along with the name.
How the name formed
- Aikaterine
- Caitlin
- Kathleen
- Kathaleen
Related forms: Caitlin · Kathleen · Catalina · Katharina
Pronouncing Kathaleen
KATH-uh-leen
Three syllables, weight at the front and a secondary beat at the back. A great many Kathaleens are simply called Kathleen, in two syllables, and answer to both.
Nicknames for Kathaleen
High
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
- 1902
- Most girls named
- 1952143 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #741reached in 1952
- Change vs 2004
- −28.6%5 in 2008, from 7
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.
Kathaleen in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Caitlin in Irish — related form
- Kathleen in English — spelling variant
- Catalina in Spanish — related form
- Katharina in German — related form
Kathaleens among us
people named Kathaleen 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
Kathaleen 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
- Said aloud it is a familiar name and needs no explanation.
- It carries the largest set of ready short forms in English, Kathy, Kate, Katie and Kit, none of which requires the unusual spelling.
- The three-syllable spelling matches the way the name is often actually said.
- It will be corrected to Kathleen on every form and by every teacher, for life.
- It is an American spelling of an Irish name, and Irish speakers will not recognize it as one of theirs.
- It reads as a name of the first half of the twentieth century.
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Kathaleen
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Kathaleens are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,500 people named Kathaleen are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kathaleen in 2025?
- Kathaleen is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Kathaleen with classmates?
- Kathaleen will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More K names
The most-given names starting with K, all years combined.
Karen#1279 · Kimberly#302 · Kathleen#1150 · Katherine#186 · Kelly#851 · Kathryn#729 · Kayla#364 · Kathy#3249
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Kathaleen? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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