Girl · Greek, through German
Käthe
Say it: KAY-teh
Meaning
German pet form of Katharina, from Greek Aikaterine, whose origin is unknown; the link to katharos 'pure' is a later reinterpretation.
Disputedsharp disagreement, or a popular meaning that is not supported.
Common in Germany in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Its wave through time
Rare in the records
In the United States
- 1,076 babies given this name since 1940
- At its height in 1944, about 1 in 28,900 girls
- Fewer than 5 babies a year in 2020
Through the ages
Used by
The family of the name
Other spellings: Käte, Kathe
Famous bearers
- Käthe Kollwitz, German artist
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- National birth statistics of European countries source
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.