Katherine

[StrawberryCat]

We think we might have chosen Kate as our top fave name, but would probably want Katherine on the BC (I know we dont necessarily need to but at the moment DH is keen to). But what do you think of Katherine and how would you spell it?
Katherine, Catherine or Kathryn?

I know quite a few. The C spelling is most common and the Ks solit between the ine and yn spellings.
Most are known by their full names. One is a Kath 2 are Kathys and I know a couple of Cats.

Katherine is nicer for the nickname Kate than Catherine
I generally find that Kathryn either gets shortened to Kath or is always Kathryn
You could use Katelyn (though not my preference) if you want Kate but a longer name

Horatio - you’re probably not older than me.

Cath-reen used to be the standard?
Not with anyone I know (born in Notts, both parents and large extended family Irish).

Are you getting it mixed up with Kathleen? Or do you just know a lot of drunk people?

I have heard CATH-reen too.
I think the Kathryn pronunciation is more with those born after 1950.

I'm a Katherine known as Katy x

Katherine or Catherine for me. Katherine if you want to shorten to Kate. Not Kathryn. I've also never heard the Cath-reen pronunciation.

I'm a Katherine known as Kate, nobody has ever called me Cathy or cath. I've also never heard of Cath reen either.
Mancunian dad, Irish Mum, grew up in Yorkshire, went to uni in Sunderland and london and live in the midlands 🤷‍♀️

Don’t like any of them. One of my best friends called Catherine and I’ve always felt sorry for her.

It's a great name, whatever spelling you choose, classic and hardly controversial. I think your ''sympathy is unnecessary and a bit odd Tatiana

I am a Katherine and I hate it. I've always been called Kate and Katy. Any time I do get called Katherine it sounds like another person. If you want to call her Kate, just put Kate on the BC. As soon as my mother dies I am changing my name legally.

I’m a Katharine and I go by Kate and I love my spelling (named after Katharine Hepburn). I’m late 40s and have never once been called Kath-reen, although occasionally when I lived in the midlands called Katha-r-eye-n, to rhyme with sign. Weird.

I’d go for the “normal” Catherine spelling; I’m a Kathryn and it’s a bloody nuisance. It sounds the same, so the spelling make no odds to me. If I was a Catherine, like everyone assumes you to be, it would mean the 95% of folk who write that down as my name would be correct. No one assumes you spell it “Kathryn”.

I have a wonderful, elegant, artistic and loving 18 year old called Katherine, known as Kathy, though she's thinking of going back to Katherine for uni. Her nickname was her choice, her choice to ditch it. I thought she might want Kate, but she never has.

“One of my best friends called Catherine and I’ve always felt sorry for her.”

I'm Katherine and it's usually not shortened - tho I do get called Kath and Kathy at work occasionally. If you use Kate as a nn, at least she won't have a lifetime of her full name being spelled wrong like I have

I like Kathryn.

Katherine - it's more classic than the other spellings .

It's a pretty common name though..

I think my favourite spelling is Katharine, but they're all lovely.

I’m a Kate, but just kate on my BC and very happy that this is the case! My parents never had any intention to call me Katherine so just didn’t put it down 🙃

Personally, I prefer it with a C. If using a K, I prefer Katharine to Katherine. I dislike Kathryn.

Or Kathleen is another version

People always warn against names with multiple spellings but there seem so many with Kathryn, Katharine, Katherine, Catherine, Cathryn, Catharine... I'd probably choose another name with one spelling.

I would just go with Kate tbh as any form of the longer version she'll always have to spell out.

Thanks all. Really interesting to read people's opinions. It looks like K has won out. Although I'm suddenly not sure about it as a name anyway!
I LOVE Kate, but dont love Katherine (or whatever spelling) so much. Although she would at least have options of nicknames - Kate, Katie, Kat, Kathy etc. I think I need to talk it over more with DH.

I'm another 'just' Kate. My parents wanted a name that couldn't be shortened, but in reality a lot of people call me Katy (until I correct them). Kate is a great name in its own right!