Nichlaus
Masculine given name derived from the Greek name Nikolaos, meaning "victorious people".
Name Census estimates that about 39 living Americans carry the first name Nichlaus. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nichlaus today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nichlaus births was 1994 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nichlaus. 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 Nichlaus. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
39
~ 1 in 8,788,573 Americans
Peak year
1994
8 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
1995 SSA rank
#8,558
Tracked since 1978
Popularity
Nichlaus: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nichlaus from the 1970s through to the 1990s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 19 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nichlaus 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 Nichlaus during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nichlaus
Nichlaus is a masculine given name of Germanic origin, derived from the Greek name Nikolaos, which itself is a compound of the words "nikē" (meaning "victory") and "laos" (meaning "people"). The name can be traced back to the early medieval period in Central and Western Europe.
The name gained popularity in the 4th century AD, due to the widespread veneration of Saint Nicholas, a 4th-century Christian saint and Greek bishop of Myra in present-day Turkey. His legendary habit of secret gift-giving gave rise to the traditional model of Santa Claus.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Nichlaus can be found in the 8th century, when Nichlaus von Freising, a Benedictine monk and chronicler from Freising, Bavaria, wrote a history of the Bavarian dukes.
In the 12th century, Nichlaus of Strasbourg, a renowned philosopher and theologian, played a significant role in the scholastic movement and was known for his commentaries on the works of Aristotle and Boethius.
During the Renaissance, Nichlaus Copernicus (1473-1543), the renowned Polish astronomer, was the first to formulate a comprehensive heliocentric model of the solar system, laying the foundation for modern astronomy.
In the 16th century, Nichlaus Kratzer (1487-1550), a German Renaissance astronomer and mathematician, made notable contributions to the development of astronomical instruments and the study of planetary motion.
Another notable figure was Nichlaus Federmann (1501-1542), a German conquistador and explorer who led expeditions into present-day Venezuela and Colombia, contributing to the exploration and colonization of the Americas.
These are just a few examples of the many notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Nichlaus, which has remained a popular choice across various cultures and regions, often associated with a sense of victory, strength, and leadership.
People
Nichlaus + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nichlaus as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Nichlaus: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nichlaus?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 39 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nichlaus 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 8,788,573 US residents.
Is Nichlaus a common name?
We classify Nichlaus as "Very Rare". It ranks above 50.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 40 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nichlaus most popular?
The single biggest year for Nichlaus was 1994, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nichlaus is about 37 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 Nichlaus in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nichlaus a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nichlaus 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 Nichlaus still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nichlaus 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 Nichlaus 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 common is the name Nichlaus?
Want to know how many people share the name Nichlaus? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.