Niko
A masculine name of Greek origin meaning "victorious people".
Name Census estimates that about 13,892 living Americans carry the first name Niko. It sits at #343 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. It is a predominantly male name (96.5% of registrations). The average person named Niko today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Niko births was 2022 (1,211 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Niko. 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
- • Although Niko is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 487 girls registered with the name since 1880.
- • Niko is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 13 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
14K
~ 1 in 24,673 Americans
Peak year
2022
1,211 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2024 SSA rank
#343
Tracked since 1962
Gender
Gender distribution for Niko
Niko leans heavily male at 96.5% of total registrations, but 487 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Niko as a male name
- Ranked #343 in 2024
- 1,001 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (1,191 births)
Niko as a female name
- Ranked #6,829 in 2024
- 17 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1972 (23 births)
Popularity
Niko: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Niko from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 5,355 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
Niko 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 Niko during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nikos live
The SSA's state-level files cover 46 states and territories. California, Texas, New York recorded the most babies named Niko, while New Hampshire, North Dakota, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 254 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Niko
The name Niko is a diminutive form of the masculine given name Nicholas. It has Greek origins and is derived from the Greek name Nikolaos, which means "victor of the people" or "conquering the people". The name Nikolaos is comprised of the Greek words "nikos" meaning "victory" and "laos" meaning "people".
Niko has been a popular name throughout history, particularly in Europe and parts of the Middle East. It first gained widespread use during the Byzantine Empire, where the name Nicholas was commonly given to boys in honor of Saint Nicholas, the 4th-century Bishop of Myra (present-day Turkey). Saint Nicholas was renowned for his generosity and became the inspiration for the legendary figure of Santa Claus.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Niko can be found in the writings of the 9th-century Byzantine historian Theophanes the Confessor. He mentions a certain Niko, who was a member of the imperial guard during the reign of Emperor Michael II (820-829 AD).
In the Middle Ages, the name Niko was commonly used in various Slavic countries, such as Russia, Serbia, and Bulgaria. One notable figure was Niko of Ravanica, a 14th-century Serbian Orthodox monk and architect who designed and oversaw the construction of the Ravanica Monastery in central Serbia.
During the Renaissance period, the name Niko gained popularity in Italy. One of the most famous bearers of the name was Niko Pisano (c.1220-c.1278), an Italian sculptor and architect who was a pioneer of the Renaissance style in Italy. His son, Giovanni Pisano (c.1245-c.1314), was also a renowned sculptor and carried on his father's artistic legacy.
In the 20th century, several notable individuals bore the name Niko. Niko Pirosmani (1862-1918) was a renowned Georgian primitivist painter, known for his unique style and depictions of daily life in Georgia. Niko Bellic, a fictional character from the popular video game series Grand Theft Auto IV, was a Serbian immigrant in Liberty City, voiced by actor Michael Hollick.
Other notable figures with the name Niko include Niko Kovač (born 1971), a Croatian former footballer and current manager; Niko Kranjčar (born 1984), a Croatian professional footballer; and Niko Nesterović (born 1973), a former professional basketball player from Serbia.
People
Niko + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Niko 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
Niko: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Niko?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 13,892 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Niko 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 24,673 US residents.
Is Niko a common name?
We classify Niko as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 14,063 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Niko most popular?
The single biggest year for Niko was 2022, when 1,211 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Niko is about 13 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Niko a male name?
Yes, 96.5% of people registered as Niko 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.