Nicolas

maleGreek, via French transmission

The French form of Nicholas, from Greek elements 'nike' (victory) and 'laos' (people) — literally 'victory of the people'.

Origin: Greek, via French transmission

Official popularity data is available for 5 regions, from 1959 to 2025. Highest recorded position: #148 in Norway in 2015. See regions.

Nicolas: Recorded since 1959, it reached #148 in 2015, and it stood at #211 in 2025.

5registrars recorded it
127times a registrar ranked it
67years from first to last
#148highest recorded position
23groupings it qualifies for

nee-koh-LAH/ni.kɔ.la/

Compare Nicolas Run Name Checker on Nicolas

Data Confidence

Evidence: ModerateCompleteness: SubstantialEditorial review: 2026-07-21

Confidence in the evidencebehind this name's data — never a rating of the name itself, and never affected by how well it matches your preferences. How this is assessed

Because: backed by officially or academically authoritative sources, recently verified, popularity data covers multiple regions.

Source authority

Averaged from the real per-claim source-authority assessments already computed for this name's meaning/origin/pronunciation/popularity evidence.

Independent corroboration

Averaged from the real per-claim supporting-source counts already computed for this name's evidence.

See full evidence assessment (8 dimensions, 1 not yet tracked)

Source agreement

No recorded source disagreement for this name's meanings or origins.

Recency

Calculated from how long ago this record was last verified (2026-07-21), against a 270-day staleness threshold.

Geographic relevance

Calculated from the number of geographies with official popularity data (5) — broader official coverage means the evidence base is relevant to more of where the name is actually used.

Completeness

Calculated from how many of the expected data sections (variants, similar names, popularity, notable usage, IPA pronunciation) are actually populated for this name.

Direct observation vs. inference

Averaged from the real per-claim direct-observation-vs-inference ratios already computed for this name's evidence.

Identity & variant resolution quality

Cross-source identity and variant resolution requires HEKNO Knowledge, which isn't connected yet.

Name Characteristics

How these are calculated

Descriptive attributes of the name itself — not a confidence measurement, and not an overall quality score. Namewise doesn't approve or disapprove of names.

Pronunciation clarity

Editorial judgement of how consistently this name is pronounced correctly on first read, mapped from an easy/moderate/variable rating to a number. Describes the name — not a measure of evidence confidence.

Spelling simplicity

Calculated directly from the name's spelling: shorter names with fewer irregular letter clusters score higher. A disclosed formula, not an editorial opinion — and not a confidence measurement.

Recorded regional spread

Derived from how many geographies' official statistics record this name. It measures where the name is registered, not how well-known it feels to people living there.

International spread

Derived from the same official statistical coverage, scaled to reflect how widely the name crosses national datasets. Not a measure of how easily it is understood in another language.

Trend stability

Derived from the name's traditional/modern classification and its current popularity trend direction.

Overview

Origin: Greek, via French transmission
Meaning: The French form of Nicholas, from Greek elements 'nike' (victory) and 'laos' (people) — literally 'victory of the people'.
Pronunciation: nee-koh-LAH
Syllables: 3
Common nicknames: None recorded
Classification: Traditional & modern
Gender usage: male
Language family: Greek, via French transmission

Popularity

Region

Falling

among boys in England and Wales · 1996–2025

View as table

England and Wales · Boys rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#345
1997	#334
1998	#312
1999	#322
2000	#392
2001	#386
2002	#382
2003	#388
2004	#352
2005	#347
2006	#310
2007	#296
2008	#285
2009	#266
2010	#269
2011	#303
2012	#311
2013	#293
2014	#283
2015	#276
2016	#267
2017	#283
2018	#285
2019	#252
2020	#253
2021	#257
2022	#256
2023	#310
2024	#343
2025	#363

VerifiedSource: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales.Confidence: high.

See all England and Wales names · Source: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales

What the data shows

FallingEngland and Wales · Boys

Recorded in official data among boys in Norway in 53 of the 67 years from 1959 to 2025.

In 2025: #211 among boys in Republic of Ireland, #326 among boys in Norway, #363 among boys in England and Wales.

Official data from 5 national registrars across 5 regions, 1959–2025 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1959
First recorded at #473 among boys in Norway in 1959 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Norway · Boys
Most recent2025
Most recently recorded at #363 among boys in England and Wales, in 2025.
England and Wales · Boys

Nicolas appears in 4 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Norway · Boys, which has ranked it in 53 years beginning in 1959, and has registered 968 births with the name.

Nicolas across 4 official records

Each registrar publishes its own list, so these figures are read down a row, never across one. A position in one country is not comparable with a position in another, and Namewise never combines them into a single ranking. The birth counts do not compare across rows either, for a different reason: England and Wales registers roughly thirty times as many births a year as Northern Ireland, so a larger total says which registrar recorded it as much as how widely the name was given.

Nicolas's first, highest and most recent recorded position in each official list, with the number of births each registrar registered with the name and its largest single year
Published list	First recorded	Highest	Most recent	Years recorded	Births registered	Most in one year
Norway · Boys	#473 (1959)	#148 (2015)	#326 (2025)	53 of 67	968 (1959–2025)	42 (2003)
Republic of Ireland · Boys	#321 (1980)	#186 (2010)	#211 (2025)	30 of 46	418 (1980–2025)	34 (2010)
England and Wales · Boys	#345 (1996)	#252 (2019)	#363 (2025)	30 of 30	3,940 (1996–2025)	197 (2016)
Northern Ireland · Boys	#241 (1999)	#241 (1999)	#339 (2024)	13 of 26	56 (1999–2024)	6 (2011)

Nicolas by decade in Norway · Boys

Births registered with the name in each decade of this one list, with the number of years the list covers in that decade. Bars are scaled on births a year, which is the figure that compares between decades — a decade the list only partly covers has a smaller total without being a quieter decade. Figures belong to this registrar alone and do not carry to another.

Births registered with Nicolas in Norway · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1950s	4	1 of 10	4
1960s	4	1 of 10	4
1970s	38	5 of 10	8
1980s	133	10 of 10	13
1990s	197	10 of 10	20
2000sbusiest	283	10 of 10	28
2010s	240	10 of 10	24
2020s	69	6 of 10	12

Across Norway · Boys, the 2000s were its busiest decade, averaging 28 births a year.

See the names Norwayhas recorded the most births with →

Nicolas appears in

Groupings this name qualifies for under their own stated rules, from the same official statistics shown above.

What the record shows

Recorded by 5 registrars between 1959 and 2025, ranked in 53 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #148, first reached in 2015.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 197 births, registered in England and Wales in 2016.

Its record falls into 5 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 9 years.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1980, and 65 years separate the first registrar to record it from the last.

Every figure here is counted from the seven official registrars Namewise holds. A position is only ever a place within the list that published it, and a record that thins or stops is a fact about what registrars printed — never about how many children received the name.

Nicolas was ranked #148 in Norway · Boys in 2015. These are the names immediately either side of it on that published list — a fact about the registrar's own output, not a similarity judgement.

Milan#144
Bastian#145
Mio#146
Eskil#147
Trygve#149
Hugo#150
Michael#151
Omar#152

Where to go next

Records with a comparable body of evidence, so the catalogue can be read outward from this one. Each group states the rule it was selected by.

Next in the catalogue

The records either side of this one alphabetically.

Nicolae · #660, 16y
Nicolai · #76, 61y
Nicolay · #151, 48y
Nicole · #2, 62y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 5 registrars, over a similar number of ranked years, whose highest position is closest to this one. A similar body of evidence — never a claim that the names themselves are alike.

Marcel · #148, 58y
Hana · #144, 53y
Raphael · #142, 51y
Eddie · #166, 55y

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1950 and 1959.

Marcel · #148, 58y
Abdullah · #146, 65y
Mohamad · #146, 70y
Jolanta · #151, 39y

Nicolas and the names beside it

Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale, in the same year, by the same registrar — so these are positions that genuinely passed each other, not a similarity judgement. Drawn from the 2,577 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Nicolas without appearing here.

Nicolas moved ahead of

Graeme
In 2010 they stood at #506 and #506 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2011 that had become #245 and #623.
Garry
In 2006 they stood at #596 and #493 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2007 that had become #282 and #629.
Theodor
In 2006 they stood at #596 and #493 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2007 that had become #282 and #629.
Erik
In 2024 they stood at #275 and #240 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2025 that had become #211 and #468.

Moved ahead of Nicolas

Alfie
In 2005 they stood at #247 and #254 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2006 that had become #596 and #197.
Jayden
In 2005 they stood at #247 and #302 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2006 that had become #596 and #247.
Noah
In 2007 they stood at #241 and #277 in Northern Ireland · Boys; by 2008 that had become #291 and #42.
Mathias
In 1973 they stood at #440 and #481 in Norway · Boys; by 1974 that had become #506 and #290.

Moved the opposite way to Nicolas

Tony
Between 1959 and 2020 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #473 to #253 while Tony went from #242 to #438.
Brian
Between 1969 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #577 to #326 while Brian went from #241 to #372.
Simen
Between 1969 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #577 to #326 while Simen went from #289 to #475.
Stein
Between 1959 and 2015 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #473 to #148 while Stein went from #22 to #503.

Moved the same way as Nicolas

Colin
Between 1969 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #577 to #326 and Colin from #557 to #119.
Filip
Between 1969 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #577 to #326 and Filip from #561 to #27.
Kristoffer
Between 1969 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #577 to #326 and Kristoffer from #421 to #187.
Levi
Between 1969 and 2025 in Norway · Boys, Nicolas went from #577 to #326 and Levi from #476 to #86.

Meaning & Origin

The French form of Nicholas, from Greek elements 'nike' (victory) and 'laos' (people) — literally 'victory of the people'.

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Greek, via French transmission

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Other names with a researched meaning and origin →

Where Nicolas is officially recorded

5 official registrars have recorded Nicolas, between 1959 and 2025, in 53 of those 67 years. Each registrar publishes for its own population on its own methodology, so the positions below are each one country's own ranking and are not comparable with one another.

Registrar	Recorded	Years	Its own highest position
Norway	1959–2025	53	#148 in 2015
Republic of Ireland	1980–2025	30	#186 in 2010
England and Wales	1996–2025	30	#252 in 2019
Northern Ireland	1999–2024	13	#241 in 1999
Scotland	2024	1	#619 in 2024

Its high point came 25 years earlier in Northern Ireland (1999) than in Scotland (2024).

No registrar recorded it for 9 years after 1959; it appears again in 1969.

Variants

No spelling variants or nicknames recorded yet.

Similar Names

No similar names recorded yet for this name.

Similarity is a demonstration score — see methodology.

Spelling

Spelling simplicity

Calculated directly from the name's spelling — see Name Characteristics above.

No commonly used alternate spellings recorded.

Pronunciation

nee-koh-LAH/ni.kɔ.la/

Syllables: 3
Ease: easy

VerifiedSource: Behind the Name.Confidence: medium.

Where Nicolas Is Recorded

National statistical agencies have recorded Nicolas in these places. This shows where the name is used — not where it comes from, and not that it carries particular cultural significance there.

England and WalesNorthern IrelandScotlandRepublic of IrelandNorway

Notable Usage

No safely-sourced notable usage recorded for this name yet.

Sibling & Surname Compatibility

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Nicolas

Nicolas at a glance

Overview

Popularity

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Nicolas across 4 official records

Nicolas by decade in Norway · Boys

Nicolas appears in

What the record shows

Names published alongside Nicolas

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Nicolas and the names beside it

Nicolas moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Nicolas

Moved the opposite way to Nicolas

Moved the same way as Nicolas

Meaning & Origin

Where Nicolas is officially recorded

Variants

Similar Names

Spelling

Pronunciation

Where Nicolas Is Recorded

Notable Usage

Sibling & Surname Compatibility

Nicolas at a glance

Nicolas across 4 official records

Nicolas by decade in Norway · Boys

Nicolas appears in

What the record shows

Names published alongside Nicolas

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1950s

Nicolas and the names beside it

Nicolas moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Nicolas

Moved the opposite way to Nicolas

Moved the same way as Nicolas