Nicole
The French feminine of Nicholas, Greek for “victory of the people.”
Popularity, 1880–2025
The French feminine of Nicholas, a defining girls' name of the 1970s and 80s.
Nicole first shows up in the national records in 1937. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in 40 different years between 1969 and 2013. It spent 13 years inside the top 10. Its biggest year was 1985, when 22,966 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 7 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1982, at No. 6. In 2025 it ranked No. 382 for girls. All told, 596,465 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Nichole (63,954), Nikole (6,982), Nicolle (6,077), Nichelle (5,548), Nichol (2,922), Nickole (2,542) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: Nicholas
Explore Nicole interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1930s | 28 | No. 2417 |
| 1940s | 616 | No. 824 |
| 1950s | 1,314 | No. 700 |
| 1960s | 18,564 | No. 47 |
| 1970s | 144,667 | No. 9 |
| 1980s | 210,494 | No. 6 |
| 1990s | 136,103 | No. 11 |
| 2000s | 54,585 | No. 31 |
| 2010s | 22,306 | No. 91 |
| 2020s | 5,823 | No. 266 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.