Nikit
A masculine name of Russian origin meaning "victorious" or "winner".
Name Census estimates that about 12 living Americans carry the first name Nikit. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nikit today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nikit births was 2015 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nikit. 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 Nikit. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
12
~ 1 in 28,562,862 Americans
Peak year
2015
6 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2016 SSA rank
#11,734
Tracked since 2015
Popularity
Nikit: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Nikit 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 Nikit during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 12 | 0 | 12 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Nikit
The given name Nikit has its origins in Russia, where it is a diminutive form of the name Nikita. Nikita itself derives from the Greek name Niketas, which means "victor" or "conqueror." The name Nikit emerged as a popular Russian variant during the Middle Ages.
In ancient Greek mythology, Niketas was one of the names associated with the goddess of victory, Nike. The name gained popularity in Eastern Orthodox Christian traditions, particularly in Russia, where it was borne by several saints and prominent figures throughout history.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Nikit can be found in the chronicles of the Rurik Dynasty, which ruled over the medieval Kievan Rus' and later the Grand Duchy of Moscow. Prince Nikit Romanovich, who lived in the 13th century, was a notable bearer of this name.
During the reign of Ivan the Terrible in the 16th century, Nikit Fufin was a prominent Russian merchant and diplomat who played a significant role in strengthening trade relations with England. He is mentioned in historical accounts of the time.
In the 17th century, Nikit Minin was a celebrated Russian merchant and military leader who, alongside Prince Dmitry Pozharsky, led the people's militia that liberated Moscow from Polish occupation during the Time of Troubles.
Another notable bearer of the name was Nikit Muravyov, a 19th-century Russian statesman and military leader who played a key role in the annexation of the Amur region and the establishment of Russian control over the Far East.
In the realm of literature, Nikit Savelyev was a renowned Russian writer and journalist in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, known for his works depicting the lives of Russian peasants and rural communities.
These are just a few examples of the historical figures who bore the name Nikit, a diminutive form of the ancient Greek name Niketas, which has been deeply ingrained in Russian culture and history for centuries.
People
Nikit + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nikit 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
Nikit: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nikit?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 12 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nikit 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 28,562,862 US residents.
Is Nikit a common name?
We classify Nikit as "Very Rare". It ranks above 32.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 12 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nikit most popular?
The single biggest year for Nikit was 2015, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nikit is about 10 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 Nikit in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nikit a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nikit 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 Nikit still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nikit 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 Nikit 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 Americans are named Nikit?
See how many people share the name Nikit on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.