Jakob vs Nils
Jakob and Nilscompared on official birth-registration statistics and Namewise's recorded data. This page states what each name's record shows — it never picks a winner or scores one name against the other.
Head to head
Ranks are only compared within one published list and one year. Two ranks from different years, from a boys' and a girls' list, or from different registrars are not comparable, so they are not placed side by side.
Norway · Boys
In 2025, Jakob was ranked #9 and Nils #61 among boys in Norway.
England and Wales · Boys
In 2024, Jakob was ranked #1402 and Nils #4270 among boys in England and Wales.
Jakob and Nils over time
Jakob and Nils appear together in 2 published lists, across 105 years of shared records. Neither was ahead in more lists than the other.
The order between them changed and held in one of those lists — a change in that published list, never a claim that one name displaced the other.
Each reached its own highest recorded position first in 1 of the lists they share.
Counted list by list. Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale in the same year, so those comparisons are real — but positions from different lists are not, so nothing here is combined into an overall standing.
How this pair is related
The relationship kinds these two qualify for, each under its own stated rule. Every one is drawn from a list they both appear in.
- One moved ahead of the other
In 1993, Jakob moved ahead of Nils in Norway · Boys — #144 and #99 the year before became #101 and #109.
- Mirrored each other
Over 81 shared years in Norway · Boys, Jakob rose about as far as Nils fell — from #150 and #26 in 1945 to #9 and #61 in 2025.
- Longest-running competitions
Jakob and Nils were both ranked in Norway · Boys for 81 years, from 1945 to 2025, ending at #9 and #61.
- Peaked in the same years
Both reached their highest recorded position in England and Wales · Boys within 2 years — Jakob #287 in 2000, Nils #1746 in 2001.
List by list
Norway · Boys81 shared years, 1945–2025
Jakob held the stronger position in 33 of those years, Nils in 48.
Highest recorded here: Jakob #6 in 2019, Nils #21 in 1947.
The order changed in 1993: Jakob moved ahead. In 1992 they stood at #144 and #99; by 1993 that had become #101 and #109.
Most recent shared year, 2025: Jakob #9, Nils #61.
England and Wales · Boys24 shared years, 1996–2024
Jakob held the stronger position in 24 of those years, Nils in 0.
Highest recorded here: Jakob #287 in 2000, Nils #1746 in 2001.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2024: Jakob #1402, Nils #4270.
Two names moving past each other in a ranking is a fact about the ranking. Namewise does not claim one name displaced the other, that families chose between them, or that either influenced the other — none of that is in this data.
Side by side
| Field | Jakob | Nils |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Editorially researched profile | Official statistical record (evidence-only) |
| Gender usage | male | male |
| Meaning | A form of Jacob (or James) used across Germanic and Scandinavian languages, from the Hebrew Ya'akov. | Not yet recorded |
| Origin | Hebrew, via German/Scandinavian transmission | Not yet recorded |
| Pronunciation | /ˈjɑː.kɔp/ | |
| Syllables | 2 | 1 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | GB-ENW, GB-NIR, IE, NO, NZ | GB-ENW, IE, NO |
| Most recent popularity observation | Norway · Boys #9 (2025) | Norway · Boys #61 (2025) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | 90/100 | Not yet recorded |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 94/100 | 95/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 100/100 | 100/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Jakob has a recorded origin (Hebrew, via German/Scandinavian transmission); Nils does not have one recorded yet.
- Jakob has 2 syllables, compared with 1 for Nils.
- A meaning is recorded for Jakob; Nils doesn't have one written yet.
- Both names have recorded usage in GB-ENW, IE, NO.
How each name got here
Jakob
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #150 among boys in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1945–2025
Highest recorded position: #6 among boys in Norway, in 2019 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #9 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys
Nils
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #26 among boys in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1945–2025
Highest recorded position: #21 among boys in Norway, in 1947 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #61 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys