Nicholas

Where Nicholas comes from

From Middle English Nicholas, from Old French Nicholas, from Latin Nīcolāus, from Ancient Greek Νικόλαος (Nikólaos), from νίκη (níkē, “victory”) + λαός (laós, “people”).
— Wiktionary's entry for Nicholas
  • Ancient Greek
  • 3 syllables
Nicholas through the years
  1. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #177 among boys, with 73 babies in the first year on record.
  2. 1965
    Nicholas Sparks born
    American writer and novelist
  3. 1989
    Nicholas Hoult born
    English actor
  4. 1999
    Peak, #5
    25,639 babies named Nicholas, its best rank.
  5. 2008
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births, down to #29.
In the dictionary
  • A male given name from Ancient Greek, notably born by St. Nicholas of Myre, on whom Father Christmas is based.
Namesakes
  • Nicholas Hoult · English actor, born 1989
  • Nicholas Sparks · American writer and novelist, born 1965
  • Nicholas Murray Butler · American philosopher, diplomat, and educator, 1862–1947
  • Nicholas Winton · British stockbroker who saved 669 Jewish children during 1938–39, 1909–2015
  • Nicholas I of Montenegro · Prince and King of Montenegro, 1841–1921

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.