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Caitlan

Girl name · 35 babies recorded · 1974–2025

Caitlan: 35 babies born in Scotland since 1974, given to girls, peaking at 10 births in 1997.

Caitlan is primarily an Irish and Scottish Gaelic form of Caitlín, itself the Irish version of Catherine, ultimately deriving from the Greek Aikaterinē, with a meaning often linked to "pure." While less common than the Caitlin spelling, it shares the same elegant lineage. A famous bearer is Caitlín R. Kiernan, the acclaimed Irish-born paleontologist and author of dark fantasy and science fiction. The name is etymologically connected to St. Catherine of Alexandria, who lends her name to locations like St. Catherine’s College at the University of Oxford. In modern Scotland, Caitlan sits alongside its variant Caitlyn, offering a slightly softer, more traditional feel while maintaining a distinct Celtic sound, and it saw moderate use from the 1970s onwards.