Nicodemus
A masculine name of Greek origin meaning "conqueror of the people".
Name Census estimates that about 1,052 living Americans carry the first name Nicodemus. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nicodemus today is around 19 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nicodemus births was 2022 (48 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nicodemus. 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.
People living today
1.1K
~ 1 in 325,812 Americans
Peak year
2022
48 babies that year
Average age
19
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,360
Tracked since 1924
Popularity
Nicodemus: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nicodemus from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 303 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Nicodemus remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nicodemus 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 Nicodemus during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nicodemus' live
The SSA's state-level files cover 3 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Nicodemus, while New York, Texas, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 30 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nicodemus
The name Nicodemus has its origins in the Greek language and culture. It is derived from the Greek words "nikos" meaning "victory" and "demos" meaning "people". The name is a compound word that can be translated to mean "victory of the people" or "conquering the masses".
Nicodemus is a name that appears in the New Testament of the Bible. He was a Pharisee and a member of the Jewish ruling council who is mentioned in the Gospel of John. According to the biblical account, Nicodemus visited Jesus at night to learn more about his teachings, and later assisted Joseph of Arimathea in burying Jesus after his crucifixion.
The earliest recorded use of the name Nicodemus dates back to the 1st century AD, likely inspired by the biblical figure. Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne this name.
One of the most famous bearers of the name was Nicodemus, a 5th-century saint and scholar from Brittany in northwestern France. He lived from around 420 to 530 AD and was known for his devotion to Christianity and his writings on theology and philosophy.
Another notable Nicodemus was Nicodemus Frischlin, a German scholar, poet, and satirist who lived from 1547 to 1590. He was known for his satirical plays and poems that criticized the religious and political establishment of his time.
In the 17th century, Nicodemus Tessin the Elder (1615-1681) was a Swedish architect and designer who is best known for his work on the Drottningholm Palace in Stockholm.
Nicodemus Tessin the Younger (1654-1728) was the son of Nicodemus Tessin the Elder and also a renowned architect in Sweden. He is particularly famous for designing the Royal Palace in Stockholm.
Another historical figure with the name Nicodemus was Nicodemus Frischlin (1590-1668), a German composer and musician who lived during the Baroque era.
People
Nicodemus + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nicodemus 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
Nicodemus: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nicodemus?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,052 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nicodemus 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 325,812 US residents.
Is Nicodemus a common name?
We classify Nicodemus as "Rare". It ranks above 90.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,075 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nicodemus most popular?
The single biggest year for Nicodemus was 2022, when 48 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nicodemus is about 19 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Nicodemus a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nicodemus 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.
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.