Nikka
A modern feminine name of Japanese origin referring to the flowering tree.
Name Census estimates that about 391 living Americans carry the first name Nikka. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Nikka today is around 33 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nikka births was 1974 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nikka. 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
391
~ 1 in 876,610 Americans
Peak year
1974
16 babies that year
Average age
33
years old
2019 SSA rank
#13,404
Tracked since 1970
Census
Nikka in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 557 people with the first name Nikka, which placed it at #19,155 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#19,155
National first-name rank
People counted
557
557 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
37.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nikka
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nikka is White at 37.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.7%) and Black (21.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Nikka described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Nikka at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White37.7% · 210
- Asian and Pacific Islander21.7% · 121
- Black or African American21.4% · 119
- Hispanic or Latino10.2% · 57
- Two or more races8.1% · 45
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 5
Popularity
Nikka: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nikka from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 97 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1970s peak, Nikka remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nikka 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 Nikka during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nikkas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Nikka
The name Nikka is believed to have originated from the Greek language, derived from the word "nikē," which means "victory" or "conquest." It is thought to have emerged during the classical period of ancient Greece, around the 5th century BCE.
The earliest recorded use of the name Nikka can be traced back to ancient Greek texts and inscriptions. One notable historical reference is found in the writings of the Greek historian Xenophon, who mentioned a woman named Nikka in his work "Hellenica," written in the 4th century BCE.
In the Byzantine period, which spanned from the 4th to the 15th centuries CE, the name Nikka was sometimes used as a diminutive or nickname for the more common name Nikolaos or Nikoletta, which also derived from the Greek word "nikē."
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Nikka was Nikka of Patras, a Christian martyr who lived in the 3rd century CE. According to legend, she was executed for her faith during the reign of the Roman Emperor Diocletian.
Another notable figure was Nikka of Alexandria, a Byzantine scholar and philosopher who lived in the 6th century CE. She was known for her contributions to the field of mathematics and her work on the concept of infinity.
In the Middle Ages, the name Nikka appeared in various European countries, particularly in regions influenced by Greek culture and the Eastern Orthodox Church. One example is Nikka of Kyiv, a princess of the Kievan Rus' who lived in the 11th century CE.
During the Renaissance period, the name Nikka gained popularity in Italy, where it was often used as a feminine form of the name Niccolò or Nicola. One notable bearer of the name was Nikka Pisano, an Italian sculptor and architect who lived in the 13th century CE and is renowned for her contributions to the Gothic style of architecture.
In the 19th century, the name Nikka was associated with Nikka Bilibin, a Russian artist and illustrator known for her intricate illustrations of Russian folktales and fairy tales. She lived from 1876 to 1942 and played a significant role in reviving interest in traditional Russian art and culture.
Throughout history, the name Nikka has been borne by individuals from various backgrounds and professions, including artists, scholars, royalty, and religious figures. While its usage may have evolved over time, the name's Greek origins and association with victory and conquest have remained a central part of its meaning and cultural significance.
People
Nikka + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nikka 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
Nikka: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nikka?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 391 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nikka 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 876,610 US residents.
Is Nikka a common name?
We classify Nikka as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 410 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nikka most popular?
The single biggest year for Nikka was 1974, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nikka is about 33 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nikka in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 557 people with the name Nikka, or 0.18 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #19,155 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Nikka in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Nikka?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nikka leans strongly female. 543 people counted with this name were female (97.8%), compared with 12 male bearers (2.2%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Nikka?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nikka is White at 37.7%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.7%) and Black (21.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Nikka most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nikka in the 2020 Census, accounting for 37.7% (210 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Nikka in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nikka a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nikka in the SSA data are female. 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 Nikka still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nikka 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 Nikka 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.
How many people have the name Nikka?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.