Nikolai

Nikolai: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “victory of the people”
Origin: Russian
Say it: nee-koh-LYE · 3 syllables
Used for: Boys

Nikolai is the Russian form of Nicholas, from Greek Nikolaos. It combines elements meaning 'victory' and 'people.'

Russian names Slavic names Names meaning victory Classic names International names

How popular is Nikolai?

2024145 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Nikolai in 2024484

2024 rank#590 boys

Peak year2021

Total US babies since 188010,550

Nikolai has been fairly stable over the last fifteen years.

Names like Nikolai

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Nicholasvictory of the people · Greek
Coleswarthy, coal-black · English
Nicolasvictory of the people · Greek
Nicovictory of the people · Greek
Colinyoung creature; cub · Scottish Gaelic
Colsonson of Cole · English
Collinpeople of victory · Greek
Nikolasvictory of the people · Greek

Nikolai questions

What does the name Nikolai mean?

Nikolai means "victory of the people". It comes from Russian. Nikolai is the Russian form of Nicholas, from Greek Nikolaos. It combines elements meaning 'victory' and 'people.'

Is Nikolai a boy or girl name?

Nikolai is mainly a boy's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Nikolai?

484 US babies were named Nikolai in 2024. Its peak year was 2021.

How do you pronounce Nikolai?

Nikolai is usually pronounced nee-koh-LYE.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.