Caitlin

Meaning and origin

Caitlin is an English spelling of the Irish name Caitlín, part of the Katherine family. It is traditionally associated with the meaning “pure,” although the family’s original Greek meaning is uncertain. That familiar meaning developed through an early Christian connection with the Greek word katharos, meaning “pure.”

The Irish name came from Cateline, an Old French form of Katherine. Katherine itself goes back to Greek Aikaterine. Several explanations have been proposed for that older name, including a connection with Hecate or with a Greek word meaning “each of the two.” Its association with purity became an enduring part of its later history.

This route connects Caitlin with a broad European name family while giving it a specifically Irish stage in its development. The unaccented spelling became especially familiar in English with a pronunciation different from that of traditional Irish Caitlín.

Pronunciation and related names

In English, Caitlin is usually pronounced KAYT-lin, with two syllables and the emphasis on the first. Irish Caitlín is closer to KAT-leen, with sounds that do not map exactly onto an English pronunciation guide.

Caitlyn, Kaitlin, Kaitlyn, Katelyn, and Katelynn are related English spellings. Kathleen and Cathleen are also connected with the Irish name, while Katherine and Catherine belong to the wider family. These names share a history even when their modern spelling and pronunciation look quite different.

Caitlin Kinnunen and The Prom

Actor Caitlin Kinnunen originated the role of Emma in the Broadway musical The Prom. The show follows a student in a small Indiana town who wants to bring her girlfriend to prom. When the dispute attracts attention, four Broadway performers become involved, hoping to help the student while also drawing attention to themselves.

The musical first appeared at Atlanta’s Alliance Theatre in 2016 before opening at Broadway’s Longacre Theatre on November 15, 2018. Its story combines a high-school conflict with the ambitions and missteps of adults from the theatre world.

Kinnunen received a 2019 Tony Award nomination for Best Performance by an Actress in a Leading Role in a Musical. Her performance gives Caitlin a contemporary stage connection, alongside the much older history of the name’s Irish and Greek relatives.

Popularity in the United States

Caitlin’s strongest American year was 1988, when 7,246 girls received the name and it ranked number 44. Its peak therefore belongs to the late twentieth-century rise of this spelling.

It ranked number 610 in 2015, number 1,794 in 2020, and number 2,333 in 2025. These figures describe Caitlin specifically. Caitlyn, Kaitlyn, and the other related spellings are recorded separately, so their popularity follows its own course.

How popular is Caitlin?

In 2025, Caitlin ranked #2,333 among girls in the United States, with 78 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1955; its largest annual count was 7,246 in 1988. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.