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Home › Baby Names Directory › Nikola

Nikola

♀ Girl

Pronounced NIK-oh-luh /ˈnɪk.ə.lə/Medium

Meaning: From the Greek Nikolaos — nike ('victory') plus laos ('people'). This is genuinely two names in one: in Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria and North Macedonia, Nikola is a common boys' name (the inventor Nikola Tesla is the best-known bearer), while in Britain, Germany, Poland and the U.S. Nikola is used as a girls' form alongside Nicola. We give both honestly.Medium

In 30 seconds: Nikola means 'victory of the people'. It is a boys' name across Slavic countries and a girls' form elsewhere — we note both honestly (said 'NIK-oh-luh').
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Origin MediumGreek, English, Slavic
MeaningFrom the Greek Nikolaos — nike ('victory') plus laos ('people'). This is genuinely two names in one: in Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria and North Macedonia, Nikola is a common boys' name (the inventor Nikola Tesla is the best-known bearer), while in Britain, Germany, Poland and the U.S. Nikola is used as a girls' form alongside Nicola. We give both honestly.
U.S. rank (2024)#14746 ↘ Falling
2024 U.S. births6 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)
Peak year1972
Total births (all-time)≈ 651

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

peak 197219482024

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Nikola descends from the Greek Nikolaos — nike ('victory') joined to laos ('people'). Its story splits by geography, and we give both sides. In Serbia, Croatia, Bulgaria and North Macedonia it is a long-established boys' name; the inventor Nikola Tesla is its most famous bearer. In Britain, Germany, Poland and the U.S., meanwhile, Nikola serves as a feminine form beside Nicola and Nicole. Used here for a girl, with the Slavic boys' use noted (said 'NIK-oh-luh').

For girls it appears only rarely in the U.S. Rare here, and a common boys' name in the Balkans.

Did you know? Nikola Tesla makes the point neatly: in Serbia and Croatia, Nikola is squarely a boys' name, while in Britain and the U.S. it reads as a girls' form of Nicola. Both are true, and we note both.
Overall data confidence 55%
References — Nikola — Greek Nikolaos; boys' name in Slavic countries, girls' form in the West

Variations

NicolaNikkolaNicole

Nicknames

NikiKola

Famous Bearers

  • Famous bearers coming soon.

If you like Nikola…

Nicola— the standard girls' spelling
Nicole— the everyday English form
Kristina— a like European three-beat classic
Paulina— a like international -a ending pick

Explore names like Nikola

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Nikola mean?

Nikola means 'victory of the people', from the Greek Nikolaos (nike, 'victory' + laos, 'people').

How do you pronounce Nikola?

As a girls' name it's said NIK-oh-luh /ˈnɪk.ə.lə/ — three syllables, stress on the first; in Slavic countries the boys' name is said nee-KOH-lah.

Is Nikola a boy or girl name?

Both, honestly: it is a common boys' name in Serbia, Croatia and Bulgaria (Nikola Tesla), and a girls' form in Britain, Germany and the U.S.

How popular is Nikola?

For girls Nikola is rare in the U.S.; as a boys' name it is very common across the Balkans.

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