Is Cate short for anything?

Yes. Cate is a nickname in most old records, and it usually points to Catherine. Less often it stands in for Katherine. Expect it in British and American records, mostly 1600s-1900s. A record that says Cate and a record that says Catherine can easily be the same person, so search both names before you rule anyone out.

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FAQs

Is Cate a nickname?+

In old records, almost always - it stands for Catherine or Katherine. Treat it as a pointer to a formal name until the documents prove otherwise.

Is Cate a real name on its own?+

It mostly rode on Catherine in the eras we track (1600s-1900s). If your ancestor's papers only ever say Cate, record it as written and keep Catherine as a candidate.

How does this nickname lookup work?+

It searches a curated dataset of historical nickname-to-formal-name mappings - in both directions - entirely in your browser. Nothing you type is uploaded or stored on our servers.

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