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Katherine, but you go the Anne-Katherine route...

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I'd call her Anne-Katherine, or even Anke.

Katherine.

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I prefer sp. Katharine.
Hate Anna, boring. x

Katherine.

Most Katherines are not called Kathy anymore. They're called Kate or Katie (along with Kathleens and Caitlins of every spelling). If you're looking for less common, I think there would actually be less Kathys today. (BTW, my firstborn is named Katherine ("Kate") and trust me when I tell you that Katies and Kates abound.) WDYT of Kitty or Kit? Kat? I even went to school with a girl named Kathryn ("Khaki") which is sort of different.

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Anna is the name of my youngest. It's a little plain for me (dh chose it), however, I do like it. Still, I like the nns Annie or Annika much better. It's classic but I wouldn't call it underused.

This message was edited 1/7/2012, 10:52 PM

I think both names are lovely classics. I do prefer Katherine though and think Kate or Katie are fine nn's. Not a big fan of the Katharine spelling though I must say. Anna is nice too, but I do prefer Katherine.

I'd say you won't have to worry about Kathy. Kathy is practically obsolete for baby Katharines nowadays. Kat, Kate or Katie is more inevitable, so it's good that you prefer those!

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I like Anna. It's simple and elegant, and I know plenty of Katies and no Annas, so Anna seems fresher and more special to me.

They're okay, but they are so overused. I prefer Anya and Catalina to them.

I love and would use both because they are both family names for me. I have only known one Katherine who goes by Kathy personally and the rest I have known go by Kate or Katie. Anna and Katherine are both common, but classics.

I don't think I have met a Kathy under 30, plenty of Kat, Kate, Katie, and Kittys, but never Kathy. I also know girls who just use plain old Katharine (various spellings) so I'd say you can completely avoid a nickname altogether if that's what you wanted. As for Anna, I absolutely adote this name. Not roo plain at all.

I love Katherine and only like Anna. Most of the Katherine's I know, and they all spell it differently, go by the full name, except the youngest, who uses Kate. When I was young, my best friend's mom was named Katherine but everyone called her Kay. I also like Kate and Kit and Kitty for nn's. BTW, I happen to love the nn Kathy--but I think it is used more for Kathleen.

This message was edited 1/7/2012, 3:28 PM

I wouldn't worry about Kathy. A young Katherine nicknamed Kathy would be a rare thing these days. Most young Katherines are Katies, Kates, Kats, or just Katherine.

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Between Katherine and Anna, I'd pick Katherine. I don't find Anna plain, really. I just don't like it as much as Katherine or Anne. Anna doesn't feel as strong as either.

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My favorite spelling of Katherine is Catherine, followed by Katharine, then Katherine. I'm of two minds on the Katharine spelling. Part of me thinks it's too uncommon and too similar to the most popular spelling (Katherine) for anyone to ever get it right. The other part of me thinks there are so many well-accepted spellings of Katherine that all Katherines will need to spell there names often.

Ha, I have a friend named Anna Katherine!

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My favorite is Anna. It's simpler and I don't think it's plain or boring. I actually see it as a bit of a "quirky" name (partially because the two Annas I know best are rather quirky people). Anna also gives me a 'smart but unassuming', or a 'talented but humble' vibe . Katherine isn't bad, but I wouldn't use it myself. I know a Katherine "Katherine". I only know one Kathy, and she's my mom's age. I think all Katherines my age tend to go by Kate or Katie. I don't like Katharine, but I do like Katherine and Catherine.

I think Katherine is nice and Kathy is definitely avoidable! There are a number of common nicknames for Katherine, so none of them are inevitable. If someone introduced themselves as Kate (or Kitty/Katie etc.) then you would assume that's their prefered nickname and use that. I don't think anyone would call Kate, Kathy.

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Anna is also nice, not plain at all and definitely a classic.

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I like both. In fact Anna Katherine or Katherine Anna "Kate" would be a lovely combo.

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Kathy is not inevitable. I'd use Katherine if I wanted Kate. I like the spelling Katharine too and wouldn't hesitate to use it if I wanted to.

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Anna isn't underused, and isn't really "plain" seeming to me. It's a little bit forgettable, but so is Kate.

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Both names are warm and dignified. Anna seems more grown-up than Kate, Kate seems more happy-go-lucky, and that is the main difference to me. Kate can go by Katharine, though, so it doesn't really suffer from childishness.

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I slightly prefer Anna because it seems less flighty & "prettygirly" than Kate, and more modest than Katharine. I feel like it's more down-to-earth. But I'm not negative about Katharine/Kate; Anna is just more my style.

This message was edited 1/7/2012, 10:07 AM

I definitely prefer Katherine to Anna. Anna is too boring to me and I honestly never cared for it.

I dislike the name Anna. I can't really place why, but it's one of those names that I've just never liked. I find it very plain and very common. I have known many girls my age named Anna (sometimes just Anne), and a few with double first names (Anna Marie, Anna Elizabeth, etc.). I could never use Anna by itself. I'd have to use a long name with Anna/Ana in it, like Annabelle or Liliana, with no nickname.

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One of my top MN choices for a girl is Katherine. I don't like any nicknames for Katherine, so for me, using as a middle name is the only way to get around the nicknames. I usually find myself pairing it with two syllable FNs (and our 2 syllable LN). I think it's overused in some pairings - I went to school with tons of girls named Mary Katherine, and all of them went by Katie - but not as a name by itself. I've also most often come across 'Katherine' as the spelling. I've only known one girl whose name was spelled differently and it was 'Catherine'. I've never personally known a girl with any other variation. I am definitely planning to use Katherine as a middle name.

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This message was edited 1/7/2012, 9:41 AM

Anna beats Katherine, but Catherine beats Anna.

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I wouldn't worry about the nn Kathy at all. I knew a whole bunch of students and teachers alike in high school who didn't go by Kathy. My mom and one of my fellow students went by Kathy. The others went by Kitty, Catie, Cat, Cate, Kit-Kat, Rin Tin Tin, etc. More than one went by just Catherine (I'd say at least 4 or 5 of them). There are sooooo many possible nicknames for Katherine. I'd pick one early on and run with it if you hate a specific one.

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Anna is a beautiful name. It's not underused at all, but it's definitely classic and definitely not too plain. I love tons of Anne names, including Anna.

Not sure where you live, but currently in the US I'm pretty sure nobody would call a Katherine Kathy. If they shortened it without permission, it would be Katie or Kate. But no matter what, I'm very much a proponent of not caring if there's a common nickname you dislike for a name you like. In my experience people will call your child whatever you introduce them as, and they might otherwise ask if you use a nickname. (My son is Benjamin "Ben".) Spelling it Katharine would cause more issues than Katherine, but any Katherine is probably going to have to mention how her name is spelled because it could always be Catherine. Or Kathryn.

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I'm not a big fan of Anna. It's not bad, but it's so common and follows the soft, frilly -a trend. But I love Anne. It's so much fresher and sharper.

Please choose a different username

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Lily has been mine for years.

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To answer your question:

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I think I prefer Katherine. I'd prefer Catherine, though. I think I'd actually prefer Catherine over Anna and Anna over Katherine as far as full names go but I could call Katherine Kate which I much prefer over Anna.

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Kathy is not inevitable. I think most would call her Katherine and if they'd try to shorten it they'd shorten it to Katie. I actually like Cathy (this spelling) a lot better than Katie. Katie is overused and 80s trendy whereas Cathy could make a comeback.

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I like Catherine nn Cathy and Katherine nn Kate. I wouldn't use Kate for Catherine for some reason. I like Katharine too.

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I think Anna is one of the most overused names ever. I know more girls named Anna than with any other name. I was born in the late 80s. Katherine is really common too. I think they're both too common (my opinion only).

This message was edited 1/7/2012, 9:06 AM

I like Katherine more than Anna, but I like them both.

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I don't think Kathy is the go-to nickname for Katherine, anymore. These days, she'd be a Katy/Katie, or a Kate. Kathy is more dated. You could also go with Kat or Kitty. Not so crazy about Kitty myself, but I think Kat sounds cool.

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Katharine is a cool spelling- I like it. I didn't used to, but it grew on me.

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Anna is nice, and it has a warm, friendly feel, but I would never use in IRL. Too close to my mother's name, and yes, I think it's a bit too plain.

This message was edited 1/7/2012, 8:50 AM

These two names are possibly my overall all-time favorite girls' names. I know tons of Katherines, but only a couple who go by Kathy. Most go by the whole thing or Katie. Kate is my preferred nickname. Actually I like Kate more than Katherine, but I have a thing about nicknames as full names.

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Anna has just always seemed like the most beautiful, soft, melodic, ballerina dancer of a name to me. It wins over Katherine for me, but they're both fantastic.