Nikoles
Feminized Greek name derived from Nicholas, meaning "victory of the people".
Name Census estimates that about 12 living Americans carry the first name Nikoles. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nikoles today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nikoles births was 1998 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nikoles. 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 Nikoles. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
12
~ 1 in 28,562,862 Americans
Peak year
1998
7 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2001 SSA rank
#11,805
Tracked since 1998
Popularity
Nikoles: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nikoles from the 1990s through to the 2000s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 7 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Nikoles remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nikoles 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 Nikoles 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 Nikoles
The given name Nikoles has its origins in the Ancient Greek language and can be traced back to the 5th century BCE. It is derived from the Greek word "nikos," which means "victory," and was often given to children as a symbolic wish for a victorious life.
One of the earliest recorded appearances of the name Nikoles is in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Herodotus, who mentions a man named Nikoles of Corinth in his work "The Histories." This suggests that the name was already in use among the Greeks during the 5th century BCE.
In the 4th century BCE, the renowned philosopher Aristotle mentions a man named Nikoles of Syracuse in his work "Politics." This indicates that the name had spread beyond mainland Greece and was also used in the Greek colonies of Sicily.
During the Hellenistic period, which began in the 4th century BCE, the name Nikoles gained popularity throughout the Greek-speaking world, including the regions of Anatolia, Egypt, and the Levant.
One of the earliest known individuals with the name Nikoles was a Greek sculptor from the island of Thasos, who lived in the 3rd century BCE. His works are mentioned in the writings of the ancient Roman author Pliny the Elder.
In the 2nd century BCE, a Macedonian general named Nikoles served under the Seleucid king Demetrius I Soter. He is mentioned in the historical accounts of the Seleucid Empire and played a role in the wars against the Parthians.
During the Byzantine Empire, which emerged in the 4th century CE, the name Nikoles continued to be used among Greek-speaking populations. One notable figure was Nikoles Kallikles, a Byzantine military commander who served under Emperor Justinian I in the 6th century CE.
In the 12th century CE, a Greek scholar and theologian named Nikoles Mesarites gained recognition for his writings on Byzantine history and culture. He served as the Metropolitan Bishop of Ephesus and played a significant role in the intellectual life of the Byzantine Empire.
Another notable figure with the name Nikoles was Nikoles Zrinski, a Croatian nobleman and military leader who lived in the 16th century. He is remembered for his heroic defense of the Croatian fortress of Siget against the Ottoman Empire in 1566.
It is worth noting that while the name Nikoles has its roots in Ancient Greek, it has also been adopted and adapted in various other cultures and languages over the centuries, sometimes with slight variations in spelling or pronunciation.
People
Nikoles + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nikoles 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
Nikoles: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nikoles?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 12 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nikoles 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 Nikoles a common name?
We classify Nikoles 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 Nikoles most popular?
The single biggest year for Nikoles was 1998, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nikoles is about 26 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 Nikoles in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nikoles a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nikoles 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 Nikoles still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nikoles 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 Nikoles 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 people are named Nikoles?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the name Nikoles at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.