Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Cathy?
Births per year, rank history and how many Cathies are alive today.
Cathy (female) is a shortened form of the name Catherine. Cathy itself was last registered for 3 babies in 2016; most Cathies are registered as Catherine, which ranked 590th in 2025 with 66 babies.
Most people called Cathy are registered as Catherine, and share that name's profile: the Catherine you are most likely to meet is around 62 years old - or else around 29: the name has two living generations. Half of all Catherines born in England and Wales are between 36 and 67, and there are at least 130,000 of them alive today. Only some Catherines go by Cathy.
How many babies are named Cathy or Catherine each year?
Combined registrations of Catherine, Katharine, Katherine, Kathryn, Cathy. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does Catherine rank as a registered name?
Where does Cathy rank as a registered name?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
Is Cathy short for Catherine?
Yes - Cathy is a shortened form of Catherine. Cathies are usually registered as Catherine at birth.
When was the name Cathy most popular?
The full name Catherine peaked in 1964, when around 3,800 babies in England and Wales were given the name. Cathy itself peaked as a registered name in 1996, with 9 babies.
How many people are called Cathy?
There's no official count of people who go by Cathy, because it's a nickname rather than a registered name. What we can say: at least 130,000 people registered as Catherine born in England and Wales are alive today, and some of them go by Cathy.
How old is the typical Cathy?
Most people called Cathy are registered as Catherine. Most living Catherines are between 36 and 67; the most common age is about 62. There is a second cluster around 29.
Is Cathy becoming more or less popular?
Declining: recent figures are a fraction of the 1964 peak.