Mikolai
A masculine name of Eastern European origin meaning "victory of the people".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Mikolai. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Mikolai today is around 4 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mikolai births was 2022 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mikolai. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Mikolai. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2022
5 babies that year
Average age
4
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,673
Tracked since 2022
Popularity
Mikolai: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Mikolai by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Mikolai during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Mikolai
Mikolai is a masculine given name of Lithuanian origin, derived from the Greek name Nikolaos, which means "victory of the people." It is a form of the name Nicholas, which has been popular throughout Europe for centuries.
The name Mikolai has its roots in the early Christian era, as it was inspired by the 4th-century Saint Nicholas of Myra, a Greek-speaking Christian bishop known for his generosity and kindness towards children. The veneration of Saint Nicholas spread throughout the Byzantine Empire and eventually to other parts of Europe, leading to the widespread use of the name Nicholas and its variants.
In Lithuania, the name Mikolai became particularly popular during the Middle Ages, as the country embraced Christianity and adopted many Christian names. The earliest recorded instances of the name Mikolai can be found in Lithuanian historical records and documents dating back to the 15th and 16th centuries.
One notable historical figure bearing the name Mikolai was Mikolai Radvila Rudasis (1512-1584), a prominent Lithuanian nobleman, diplomat, and military leader who played a significant role in the Lithuanian Wars against Muscovy. Another historical figure was Mikolai Daukša (c. 1538-1613), a Lithuanian Catholic priest and writer who translated the Bible into the Lithuanian language.
In the 17th century, Mikolai Kristupas Radvila (1589-1670), also known as Mikolai Radvila the Orphan, was a prominent Lithuanian nobleman and military leader who fought in the Smolensk War against Russia. Mikolai Kazimieras Radvilas (1688-1690), a member of the influential Radvila family, was briefly the Grand Hetman of Lithuania, a high military position.
In the 19th century, Mikolai Konstantinas Čiurlionis (1875-1911) was a renowned Lithuanian painter, composer, and writer, considered a pioneer of abstract art and one of the most influential figures in Lithuanian culture.
While the name Mikolai has historical significance and roots in Lithuanian culture, it has also been used in other Slavic countries and cultures influenced by the Byzantine Empire and Eastern Orthodox Christianity.
People
Mikolai + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mikolai as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Mikolai: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mikolai?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mikolai going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Mikolai a common name?
We classify Mikolai as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mikolai most popular?
The single biggest year for Mikolai was 2022, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mikolai is about 4 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Mikolai in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mikolai a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Mikolai in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Mikolai still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mikolai in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Mikolai can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have Mikolai as a first name?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.