Kitty

Meaning: Its source is Aikaterine, a Greek name meaning "Pure."

Nickname For: Katherine and Kathryn

Popularity: The name Kitty ranked 987th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

Though this name has fluctuated in use, it has been quietly present throughout the last century.

Narrative: This meaning assumes the source name was derived from the Greek term katharos. However, it may have evolved from Hecate, the name of the Greek goddess of magic. Another possible source is katateinô, the Greek word for torture.

All three meanings might have been associated with St. Aikaterine (Katherine) of Alexandria, who was born a pagan but died as a Christian martyr.

Arts and Music

''Kitty, My Love, Will You Marry Me?''
- Traditional Irish song (see list of Names in Song titles)
Kitty Wells (born 1919)
American singer. Original name: Muriel Deason Wright.
- Member of the Country Music Hall of Fame (see list of Country Music Hall of Fame)

Stage and Screen

Kitty Carlisle (born 1915)
American actress and singer best known for her 12 years as a panelist on the game show ''To Tell the Truth.'' Original name: Katherine Conn.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Picture (see list of Movie Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Kitty Haynes
Fictional character.
- Portrayed by Karen Akers (see list of Characters in the film The Purple Rose of Cairo)
Kitty Kallen (born 1926)
American singer and actress.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Recording (see list of Recording Personalites with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Kitty Russell
Fictional character.
- Portrayed by Amanda Blake (see list of Characters on ''Gunsmoke'')
Kitty Winn (born 1944)
American actress.
- Winner of the 1971 Cannes Film Festival Best Actress award, for The Panic in Needle Park (see list of Cannes Film Festival Best Actress Winners)

The Literary World

Kitty Barrett
Fictional character.
- Character in The Last Gentleman by Walker Percy (see list of Characters in Literature of the American South)
Kitty Bennet
Fictional character
- A character in Jane Austen''s novel, Pride and Prejudice (see list of Characters from the Classics)
Kitty Donahue
Fictional character.
- Al''s common-law wife in Stephen King''s novel It (see list of Characters in It)