Given name
Caitlynn
“one who is pure; virginal”
Caitlynn is a variant of Catherine. One English interpretation is “one who is pure; virginal.” Its derivation is not certain.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Caitlynn is a variant of Catherine. One English interpretation is “one who is pure; virginal.” Its derivation is not certain.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1985. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Caitlynn through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 4,947
- 0 boys · 4,947 girls
- Most popular year
- 1998
- 297 babies
- 2025
- 11
- #8,971 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −68%
- Cooling
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 11 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 8,971 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 67.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 297 in 1998. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,185 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.
Caitlynn’s family of names
Caitlynn has a related form in Catherine.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Caitlynn, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.