Kathi
Feminine · “pure”
Kathi is Katherine cut to the front and given the -i ending of its decade, and Katherine's own meaning is a Greek word imposed on the name centuries after it appeared.
How old is the name Kathi?
Kathi first appears in US birth records in 1938 — 87 years ago. The typical Kathi alive today was born around 1958, making them about 67 years old. About 8,600 people named Kathi are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Kathi most popular?
Kathi peaked in 1954, reaching #311 nationally. See the whole 1954 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Aikaterine to Kathi
The story of Kathi
Catherine of Alexandria was one of the most venerated saints of medieval Europe, and the name spread across every Christian language. English produced Kate, Kathy, Kathie and Kathi as clippings, and American families of the 1950s and 1960s registered them outright with the -i and -ie endings then in fashion. Kathi peaked around 1962.
Meaningscholars disagree
pure
Through Katherine, whose origin is disputed. It is first recorded as Aikaterine, of unrecovered origin, possibly linked to Hecate. The Greek katharos, 'pure', was attached later and produced the th spelling. The 'pure' reading is a reinterpretation, though a very old and settled one.
How the name formed
- Aikaterine
- Katherine
- Kathi
Related forms: Kathy · Kathie · Käthe
Pronouncing Kathi
KATH-ee
Two syllables, stress on the first. Kathi, Kathy and Kathie are said identically.
Nicknames for Kathi
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
- 1938
- Most girls named
- 1958824 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #311reached in 1954
- Change vs 1999
- 0.0%5 in 2001, 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.
Kathi in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Kathy in English — spelling variant
- Kathie in English — spelling variant
- Käthe in German — related form
Kathis among us
people named Kathi 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
Kathi 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
- Katherine stands behind it with more forms across more languages than almost any other name.
- Kat is available as a short form with modern currency.
- Two clean syllables with no pronunciation risk.
- Kathy is much the commoner spelling of the sound.
- The 'pure' meaning is a later attachment rather than the original.
- It is sharply dated to the 1960s.
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Kathi
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Kathis are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 8,600 people named Kathi are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Kathi in 2025?
- Kathi is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Kathi with classmates?
- Kathi 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 Kathi? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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