Niels vs Thorstein
Niels and Thorsteincompared 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 2004, Niels was ranked #381 and Thorstein #582 among boys in Norway.
Niels and Thorstein over time
Niels and Thorstein appear together in 1 published list, across 47 years of shared records. Niels held the stronger position in more years in 1 of them, Thorstein in 0.
In none of those lists did their order change and stay changed.
Thorstein reached its own highest recorded position earlier in 1 of those lists, and Niels in none. Each position is a place inside its own list, so this compares when they peaked and never how high.
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.
- Repeatedly exchanged positions
Niels and Thorstein changed places 14 times in Norway · Boys between 1945 and 2004, ending at #381 and #582.
- Longest-running competitions
Niels and Thorstein were both ranked in Norway · Boys for 47 years, from 1945 to 2004, ending at #381 and #582.
List by list
Norway · Boys47 shared years, 1945–2004
Niels held the stronger position in 38 of those years, Thorstein in 9.
Highest recorded here: Niels #201 in 1959, Thorstein #235 in 1945.
The order between them never changed and held in this list.
Most recent shared year, 2004: Niels #381, Thorstein #582.
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 | Niels | Thorstein |
|---|---|---|
| Record type | Official statistical record (evidence-only) | Official statistical record (evidence-only) |
| Gender usage | male | male |
| Meaning | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Origin | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Pronunciation | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Syllables | 1 | 2 |
| Common variants / nicknames | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Recorded regional usage | GB-ENW, NO | NO |
| Most recent popularity observation | Norway · Boys #471 (2025) | Norway · Boys #561 (2013) |
| Pronunciation clarity (demonstration score) | Not yet recorded | Not yet recorded |
| Spelling simplicity (demonstration score) | 94/100 | 70/100 |
| International familiarity (demonstration score) | 60/100 | 40/100 |
| Data Confidence | medium | medium |
What the data shows
- Niels has 1 syllable, compared with 2 for Thorstein.
- Both names have recorded usage in NO.
How each name got here
Niels
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #233 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: #201 among boys in Norway, in 1959 (recorded 1945–2025).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #471 among boys in Norway, in 2025.
Norway · Boys
Thorstein
Popularity journey
First recorded1945
First recorded at #235 among boys in Norway in 1945 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Highest recorded1945–2013
Highest recorded position: #235 among boys in Norway, in 1945 (recorded 1945–2013).
Norway · Boys
Most recent2013
Most recently recorded at #561 among boys in Norway, in 2013.
Norway · Boys