Katie Wade’s Blog

My name is Katie Elizabeth Wade. When I first began learning about my name all I knew was that my mother named me Katie after my Aunt Katie. An aunt I never met and my mother only knew for a short time of her life. However, she was an extraordinary woman and my mother had always wanted to name her child after her. My middle name came from my dad’s side of the family. There was this older lady that lived across the street from my dad’s family growing up and her name was Elizabeth. Everyone called her “bu” because that’s all the kids could pronounce when they were younger. Bu was like a second mother to my dad, she practically raised him while my grandmother and grandfather were working all day every day. Bu taught my dad how to sew, cook, clean and many other skills he still uses in life. Because Bu made such an impact on my dad’s life he thought it only necessary to name his second little girl after her.

            When I went to www.behindthename.com and entered Katie it said that Katie was a diminutive of Kate, so when I looked up Kate it said it was diminutive of Katherine. Of Course, the name my mother refused to give me because she did not want me to be called by a “nickname” is where my name originally came from. Katherine comes from the Greek name Αικατερινη (Aikaterine) and the meaning or derivation of the name is debated. During the early Christian era it became connected with the Greek name: καθαρος (katharos) “pure”, and the spelling in Latin was to Katharina from Katerina. It was also born by three of King Henry VIII’s wives, including Katherine of Aragon, and by two empresses of Russia, including Catherine the Great. ((How cool is that!!))

            On the same website I looked up the name “Elizabeth”. Now Elizabeth is found in the Hebrew form as אֱלִישֶׁבַע (‘Elisheva’) which means “my God is an oath’ or perhaps ‘my God is abundance”.  It is a very common name among Christians and also in England. Ever since Queen Elizabeth I reigned the name became very popular in England!

            According to www.howmanyofme.com there are 172,358 people in the U.S with the first name Katie. And from the derived name Katherine there are 477,417 people in the U.S with the first name Katherine.  There are 122,023 people in the U.S. with the last name Wade. NOT TO MENTION THERE ARE 69 PEOPLE IN THE U.S with the name KATIE WADE. -this totally blows my mind.