How Many People Are Named Kathryn?
An estimated 293,017 people in the United States have the first name Kathryn. While not in the top 50, it remains a well-known name ranking #170 overall. It is almost exclusively a female name. The average bearer is 50 years old, and Kathryn peaked in popularity in 1952 with 8,517 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Kathryn as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Kathryn paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- While Kathryn is overwhelmingly female, 1,092 male births have been registered with this name since 1880.
- Kathryn has fallen dramatically from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are less than 5% of what they were at the name's height.
Estimated Living Americans
293,017
About 1 in 1,170 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Common
Predicted Gender
Female
99.8% confidence
Average Age
50
years old
Peak Year
1952
8,517 births
Total Registered
456,128
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Kathryn
Kathryn is almost exclusively a female name. Out of 456,128 total births registered, 99.8% were female.
Kathryn as a male name
Ranked #11,732 in 2009
6 male births in 2009
Peak: 1989 (38 births)
Kathryn as a female name
Ranked #717 in 2024
391 female births in 2024
Peak: 1952 (8,504 births)
Kathryn: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Kathryn span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 77,933 babies were registered. Kathryn has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Kathryn by Decade
How has Kathryn tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
| Decade | Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 3,276 | 0 | 3,276 | |
| 1890s | 5,660 | 7 | 5,653 | |
| 1900s | 8,333 | 0 | 8,333 | |
| 1910s | 29,280 | 45 | 29,235 | |
| 1920s | 33,868 | 77 | 33,791 | |
| 1930s | 22,672 | 89 | 22,583 | |
| 1940s | 44,682 | 102 | 44,580 | |
| 1950s | 77,933 | 130 | 77,803 | |
| 1960s | 44,988 | 124 | 44,864 | |
| 1970s | 36,564 | 128 | 36,436 | |
| 1980s | 62,725 | 280 | 62,445 | |
| 1990s | 47,237 | 58 | 47,179 | |
| 2000s | 26,356 | 52 | 26,304 | |
| 2010s | 10,195 | 0 | 10,195 | |
| 2020s | 2,359 | 0 | 2,359 | |
Kathryn by State
Birth registrations for Kathryn span all 51 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Pennsylvania, California, New York. The lowest are in Alaska, Hawaii, Wyoming. On average, about 8,565 Kathryns were registered per state.
Kathryn + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Kathryn as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Kathryn
Other first names starting with K with a similar number of bearers.
Kathryn: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Kathryn?
We estimate approximately 293,017 people named Kathryn are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 1,170 Americans share this first name.
Is Kathryn a common name?
Kathryn is classified as "Common" and is more popular than 99.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 456,128 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Kathryn most popular?
Kathryn reached peak popularity in 1952, when 8,517 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Kathryn is approximately 50 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Kathryn a female name?
Kathryn is predominantly female. 99.8% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Kathryn Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Kathryn Smith, Kathryn Johnson, Kathryn Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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