Given name · also Irish Caitlín
Caitlin
“one who is pure; virginal”
Caitlin is a variant of Catherine. One English interpretation is “one who is pure; virginal.” Its derivation is not certain.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Caitlin is a variant of Catherine. One English interpretation is “one who is pure; virginal.” Its derivation is not certain.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Caitlin comes from Irish Caitlín, and ultimately from Irish.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
In Scottish Gaelic usage, Caitlin is a diminutive of Catrìona.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1955. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Caitlin through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 112,426
- 283 boys · 112,143 girls
- Most popular year
- 1988
- 7,274 babies
- 2025
- 78
- #2,333 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −44%
- Cooling
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 78 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 2,333 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 43.5% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 7,246 in 1988. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (10). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 102,632 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Caitlin’s family of names
In English usage, Caitlin has a diminutive in CATIE. Caitlin has a related form in Catherine. In English usage, Caitlin has a related form in Kaitlyn.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 17
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Caitlin
- Caitlin ClarkAmerican basketball player (born 2002)
- Caitlin MoranEnglish author and broadcasterborn 1975
- Caitlin FoordAustralian soccer playerborn 1994
- Caitlin StaseyAustralian actress and singerborn 1990
- Caitlin FitzGeraldAmerican actress (born 1983)
- Caitlin LeverenzAmerican swimmer, Olympic bronze medalistborn 1991
- Caitlin CarverAmerican actressborn 1992
- Caitlin GerardAmerican actressborn 1988
- Caitlin CarmichaelAmerican actressborn 2004
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Caitlin, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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