Nickolai
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- nee-ko-LY
- Origin
- Greek
- US rank, 2025
- #7,675 for boys
Nickolai is a boys' name of Greek origin, meaning “victory of the people”. In 2025 it ranked 7,675th for boys in the US (10 babies).
What does Nickolai mean?
Greek: spelling of Nikolai; Russian form of Nicholas
“victory of the people”
The Russian form of Nicholas, borne by the writer Nikolai Gogol and the composer Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov.
Meaning borrowed from Nikolai. More on Wiktionary.
Is Nickolai a girl's or a boy's name?
Nickolai is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 10 boys in the US. Too few girls were given it to be listed.
How popular is Nickolai in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #7,675among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 10about 1 in 170,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Fallingdown 42% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 10 boys in the US were named Nickolai, making it the 7,675th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 4,536th. Its busiest year was 2015, with 31 boys. It first appears in the records in 1976.
It has been given to fewer boys each year for the last 3 years. 2025 had fewer boys named Nickolai than any year since 2001.
Half of all the boys named Nickolai in the US since 1880 were born between 2005 and 2017, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2025, 493 boys in the US were given Nickolai or a name that sounds the same. With every name's spellings counted this way, that ranks #572, up from #7,675 for this spelling alone.
Nickolai in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 10 | #7,675 |
| 2024 | 11 | #7,252 |
| 2023 | 15 | #5,922 |
| 2022 | 16 | #5,629 |
| 2021 | 12 | #6,693 |
| 2020 | 21 | #4,536 |
| 2019 | 16 | #5,551 |
| 2018 | 25 | #4,090 |
| 2017 | 18 | #5,107 |
| 2016 | 24 | #4,198 |
| 2015 | 31 | #3,512 |
| 2014 | 17 | #5,248 |
| 2013 | 20 | #4,619 |
| 2012 | 29 | #3,622 |
| 2011 | 12 | #6,572 |
| 2010 | 21 | #4,516 |
| 2009 | 20 | #4,746 |
| 2008 | 28 | #3,741 |
| 2007 | 17 | #5,207 |
| 2006 | 25 | #3,886 |
| 2005 | 20 | #4,321 |
| 2004 | 11 | #6,514 |
| 2003 | 11 | #6,251 |
| 2002 | 11 | #6,081 |
| 2001 | 9 | #6,928 |
| 2000 | 12 | #5,581 |
| 1999 | 11 | #5,650 |
| 1998 | 8 | #6,837 |
| 1997 | 10 | #5,636 |
| 1996 | 6 | #7,964 |
| 1995 | 9 | #5,922 |
| 1994 | 0 | – |
| 1993 | 11 | #4,995 |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 0 | – |
| 1990 | 5 | #8,108 |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 0 | – |
| 1987 | 0 | – |
| 1986 | 0 | – |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 0 | – |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 0 | – |
| 1981 | 0 | – |
| 1980 | 5 | #6,248 |
| 1979 | 0 | – |
| 1978 | 0 | – |
| 1977 | 0 | – |
| 1976 | 6 | #4,933 |
Names like Nickolai
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Makai Kai Finnegan Keanu Orion Nico Nicolai Malachi Phoenix Kenai Elian Kayden
Other spellings of Nickolai
Names related to Nickolai
More Greek names
Luca Theodore Sophia George Theo Lucas Sofia Alexander Sebastian Penelope Phoebe Margot Luke Chloe Sophie Zoe
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Nickolai: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/nickolai, updated 20 October 2026.