Cato is a Roman family name derived from the Latin catus, meaning "wise" or "shrewd". It belonged to Cato the Elder and Cato the Younger, statesmen admired by the American founders for their republican virtue, and George Washington had the play Cato performed for his troops at Valley Forge. Cato has risen from number 4314 among US boys in 2015 to number 2804 in 2025, its best rank to date.