Nikolai
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The story
Nikolai is the Russian and Bulgarian form of Nicholas in its most familiar transcription, and the Greek underneath is unusually plain: Nikolaos, victory of the people, from nike, victory, and laos, people. Behind the Name's entry for the fuller spelling Nikolay names the novelist Nikolay Gogol, and its Nicholas entry counts two tsars of Russia among the name's bearers without naming them. December 6 is its name day across four countries, the old feast of Saint Nicholas. The American record picks Nikolai up in the 1960s with 52 boys and never looks back: a rise in every completed decade since, through 1,632 in the 2000s to 5,060 across the 2010s, with 3,057 so far in this one, well past half the previous total. On this site Nikolai already anchors its own small family, with Kolya, the traditional Russian pet form, and Niko registered beside it.
Sources list Nikolai among the forms of Nicholas (Bulgarian · Russian).
How popular is Nikolai around the world?
In the United States, 3,057 babies were named Nikolai between 2020 and 2025. In Norway, 63 boys were given the name Nikolai in 2025.
Nikolai is on the official records of the United States, Norway, Austria, Canada, Ireland, South Australia, England and Wales, Mexico City, Poland, Spain, Argentina and Brazil.
United States
1 in 7,100
In the United States, 3,057 babies were named Nikolai between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Nikolai peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Norway
1 in 440register 2026
In Norway, 63 boys were given the name Nikolai in 2025.
share of the boys on the register for that year, SSB’s own figure
People who have or have had a Norwegian ID number, emigrants left out, from Statistics Norway’s name statistics (release of January 2026): by year of birth for 1945–2020 (everyone born that year who was ever registered in Norway, including people who registered later and people who have since died) and by year of naming from 2021; only first names carried by 200 or more living people are listed, counts under 4 are withheld, and SSB merges spellings that differ only by letters outside the Norwegian alphabet. The shares are SSB’s own, of the people of that sex and year in that count; the 2025 figure counts the children named that year, and no year is a count of births. Source: Statistics Norway (SSB), table 10467 (updated 2026-01-28)
Austria
1 in 8,500
In Austria, 9 boys named Nikolai were born in 2025, the 494th most common name among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Canada
1 in 11,000
In Canada, 34 boys named Nikolai were born in 2024, the 772nd most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Ireland
1 in 18,000
In Ireland, 3 boys named Nikolai were born in 2025, the 829th most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 boy was registered as Nikolai in 2017.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 25,000
In England and Wales, 23 boys named Nikolai were born in 2025, ranked 1,226th among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Mexico City City
1 in 39,000
In Mexico City, there were 3 registrations of Nikolai in 2022.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Poland
1 in 62,000
In Poland, 4 boys named Nikolai were born in 2025, the 490th most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Spain
1 in 69,000
In Spain, 646 residents are named Nikolai, ranked 1,915th among men, with a mean age of 34.4 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Argentina
1 in 110,000
In Argentina, 6 newborns were given the name Nikolai in 2024.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 80 people in Brazil were named Nikolai, ranked 48,268th, with a median age of 17.
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Montevideo City
last on record 1998
Nikolai is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
New Zealand
last on record 2024
Nikolai is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Scotland
last on record 2018
Nikolai is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Puerto Rico: that registry withholds small counts, so rare uses may sit below its floor.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown.
When you meet Nikolai
Most people given the name Nikolai in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Nikolai deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Nikolai truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Nikolai fits with your family’s names and surname.
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