Nicholas
Encyclopedia
Nicholas or Nikolas is a male given name
, derived from the Greek
name Νικόλαος (Nikolaos
), a combination of the words for "victory" (νίκη; níkē) and "people" (λαὸς; laós). The name can be understood to mean victory of the people or "power of the people". In addition, "laos" or "λαὸς" in Greek, originates from the word root "-las", as found in the word "λα-τομεῑο" meaning "stone" or "rock" (in Greek Mythology
, Deucalion
and Pyrrha
recreated the people after they had vanished in a catastrophic deluge, by throwing stones behind their shoulders while they kept marching on). The name became popular through Saint Nicholas
, Bishop of Myra
in Lycia
, the inspiration for Santa Claus
. The customary English version of spelling "Nicholas", using an "h", first came into use in the 12th century and has been firmly established since the Reformation
, though "Nicolas" is occasionally used. In 2006, Nicholas – and its variations – was the 17th most popular male name given to babies in the USA. Roughly 0.7151% of the baby boys born that year, or 15,414, were given that name. It is decreasing in popularity, from a high in 1997, when 27,248 US males were given the name Nicholas. That year was the most popular year for Nicholas since 1880, when U.S. records were kept for given names.
The Eastern Orthodox Church
, the Roman Catholic Church
, and the Anglican Churches
celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day
for "Nicholas". In Greece, the name and its derivatives are especially popular in maritime regions, as St. Nicholas is considered the protector saint of seafarers.
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
, derived from the Greek
Greek language
Greek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
name Νικόλαος (Nikolaos
Nikolaos
Nikolaos is a common Greek first name which some believe means " victory of the people", Nikolaos means "victorious over the people" . Composed from Niko and Laos . In addition, Laos originates from the greek root "-las", as found in word "λα-τομείο" meaning stone...
), a combination of the words for "victory" (νίκη; níkē) and "people" (λαὸς; laós). The name can be understood to mean victory of the people or "power of the people". In addition, "laos" or "λαὸς" in Greek, originates from the word root "-las", as found in the word "λα-τομεῑο" meaning "stone" or "rock" (in Greek Mythology
Greek mythology
Greek mythology is the body of myths and legends belonging to the ancient Greeks, concerning their gods and heroes, the nature of the world, and the origins and significance of their own cult and ritual practices. They were a part of religion in ancient Greece...
, Deucalion
Deucalion
In Greek mythology Deucalion was a son of Prometheus and Pronoia. The anger of Zeus was ignited by the hubris of the Pelasgians, and he decided to put an end to the Bronze Age. Lycaon, the king of Arcadia, had sacrificed a boy to Zeus, who was appalled by this savage offering...
and Pyrrha
Pyrrha
In Greek mythology, Pyrrha was the daughter of Epimetheus and Pandora and wife of Deucalion.When Zeus decided to end the Bronze Age with the great deluge, Deucalion and his wife, Pyrrha, were the only survivors...
recreated the people after they had vanished in a catastrophic deluge, by throwing stones behind their shoulders while they kept marching on). The name became popular through Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...
, Bishop of Myra
Myra
Myra is an ancient town in Lycia, where the small town of Kale is situated today in present day Antalya Province of Turkey. It was located on the river Myros , in the fertile alluvial plain between Alaca Dağ, the Massikytos range and the Aegean Sea.- Historical evidence :Although some scholars...
in Lycia
Lycia
Lycia Lycian: Trm̃mis; ) was a region in Anatolia in what are now the provinces of Antalya and Muğla on the southern coast of Turkey. It was a federation of ancient cities in the region and later a province of the Roman Empire...
, the inspiration for Santa Claus
Santa Claus
Santa Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
. The customary English version of spelling "Nicholas", using an "h", first came into use in the 12th century and has been firmly established since the Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
, though "Nicolas" is occasionally used. In 2006, Nicholas – and its variations – was the 17th most popular male name given to babies in the USA. Roughly 0.7151% of the baby boys born that year, or 15,414, were given that name. It is decreasing in popularity, from a high in 1997, when 27,248 US males were given the name Nicholas. That year was the most popular year for Nicholas since 1880, when U.S. records were kept for given names.
The Eastern Orthodox Church
Eastern Orthodox Church
The Orthodox Church, officially called the Orthodox Catholic Church and commonly referred to as the Eastern Orthodox Church, is the second largest Christian denomination in the world, with an estimated 300 million adherents mainly in the countries of Belarus, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Georgia, Greece,...
, the Roman Catholic Church
Roman Catholic Church
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...
, and the Anglican Churches
Anglicanism
Anglicanism is a tradition within Christianity comprising churches with historical connections to the Church of England or similar beliefs, worship and church structures. The word Anglican originates in ecclesia anglicana, a medieval Latin phrase dating to at least 1246 that means the English...
celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day
Name day
A name day is a tradition in many countries in Europe and Latin America that consists of celebrating the day of the year associated with one's given name....
for "Nicholas". In Greece, the name and its derivatives are especially popular in maritime regions, as St. Nicholas is considered the protector saint of seafarers.
Male variations
Variations for males include:- Leonese languageLeonese languageThe Leonese language is the endonym term used to refer to all vernacular Romance dialects of the Astur-Leonese linguistic group in the Spanish provinces of León and Zamora; Astur-Leonese also includes the dialects...
: Nicolás, Nicu, Colás, Нико (Niko), Никица (Nikica) - Taiwanese (Traditional Chinese)Taiwanese languageTaiwanese language may refer to* Most commonly** Taiwanese Hokkien, spoken by about 70% of the population of Taiwan* Also** One of the Languages of Taiwan** One of the indigenous Formosan languages spoken in Taiwan...
: Quēkǒu, Ní-jī, Nígǔlāsī
Female forms
Female forms include:- BulgarianBulgarian languageBulgarian is an Indo-European language, a member of the Slavic linguistic group.Bulgarian, along with the closely related Macedonian language, demonstrates several linguistic characteristics that set it apart from all other Slavic languages such as the elimination of case declension, the...
: Николина (Nikolina), Николета (Nikoleta), Никол (Nikol), Нина (Nina) - CroatianCroatian languageCroatian is the collective name for the standard language and dialects spoken by Croats, principally in Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, the Serbian province of Vojvodina and other neighbouring countries...
: Nikolina, Nika, Nina - CzechCzech languageCzech is a West Slavic language with about 12 million native speakers; it is the majority language in the Czech Republic and spoken by Czechs worldwide. The language was known as Bohemian in English until the late 19th century...
: Nikol, Nikoleta, Nikola, Nicol - DutchDutch languageDutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
: Klasina, Klazina, Nicole, Nicolien, Nicolet, Nicoline - DanishDanish languageDanish is a North Germanic language spoken by around six million people, principally in the country of Denmark. It is also spoken by 50,000 Germans of Danish ethnicity in the northern parts of Schleswig-Holstein, Germany, where it holds the status of minority language...
: Nikoline - EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
: NicoleNicoleNicole is a feminine given name .Nicole may also refer to:- People known solely as Nicole :* Nicole , winner of the 1982 Eurovision Song Contest...
/Nichole/Nicolle/Nikole/Nikkole, Nicola/Nichola, Nicolette, Colette, Nicky/Nikki/Nicci - FrenchFrench languageFrench is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
: Colette, Coline, Nicole, Nicolette, Nicoline - GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
: Nicole, Nikole, Nicola, Nikola - GreekGreek languageGreek is an independent branch of the Indo-European family of languages. Native to the southern Balkans, it has the longest documented history of any Indo-European language, spanning 34 centuries of written records. Its writing system has been the Greek alphabet for the majority of its history;...
: Νίκη (Níkē, a conflation with NíkeNike (mythology)In Greek mythology, Nike was a goddess who personified victory, also known as the Winged Goddess of Victory. The Roman equivalent was Victoria. Depending upon the time of various myths, she was described as the daughter of Pallas and Styx and the sister of Kratos , Bia , and Zelus...
), Νικολέτα (Nikoléta), Νικολίνα (Νikolína) - HungarianHungarian languageHungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
: Nikolett - ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
: NicolettaNicolettaNicoletta or Nicoleta may refer to:* Nicoleta Alexandru, singer who represented Romania at the Eurovision Song Contest 2003* Nicoletta Braschi, Italian actress* Nicoleta Grasu, Romanian discus thrower* Nicoleta Onel, Romanian gymnast...
, Nicla, Nicole, Nicolina - MacedonianMacedonian languageMacedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
: Nikolina - PortuguesePortuguese languagePortuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
: Nicole - RomanianRomanian languageRomanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
: Niculina, Nicoleta, Nicolina, Nico - ScottishScottish languageScottish language can refer to:* Scots language , a West Germanic language spoken in the Lowlands of Scotland and Ulster.* Scottish Gaelic , a Celtic language spoken in the Hebrides and parts of mainland Scotland...
: Nicola - SerbianSerbian languageSerbian is a form of Serbo-Croatian, a South Slavic language, spoken by Serbs in Serbia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Montenegro, Croatia and neighbouring countries....
: Nikolija (archaic), Nikolina, Nikoleta - SlovakSlovak languageSlovak , is an Indo-European language that belongs to the West Slavic languages .Slovak is the official language of Slovakia, where it is spoken by 5 million people...
: Nikola - Slovene: Nika
- SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
: Nicolasa, Nikoletta, Nicolá - TurkishTurkish languageTurkish is a language spoken as a native language by over 83 million people worldwide, making it the most commonly spoken of the Turkic languages. Its speakers are located predominantly in Turkey and Northern Cyprus with smaller groups in Iraq, Greece, Bulgaria, the Republic of Macedonia, Kosovo,...
: Nikol
People known as Nicholas
- Nicholas of CusaNicholas of CusaNicholas of Kues , also referred to as Nicolaus Cusanus and Nicholas of Cusa, was a cardinal of the Catholic Church from Germany , a philosopher, theologian, jurist, mathematician, and an astronomer. He is widely considered one of the great geniuses and polymaths of the 15th century...
- Nicholas I of MontenegroNicholas I of MontenegroNikola I Mirkov Petrović-Njegoš was the only king of Montenegro, reigning as king from 1910 to 1918 and as prince from 1860 to 1910. He was also a poet, notably penning "Onamo, 'namo!", a popular song from Montenegro.-Early life:Nikola was born in the village of Njeguši, the ancient home of the...
, King of Montenegro - Nicholas I of RussiaNicholas I of RussiaNicholas I , was the Emperor of Russia from 1825 until 1855, known as one of the most reactionary of the Russian monarchs. On the eve of his death, the Russian Empire reached its historical zenith spanning over 20 million square kilometers...
- Nicholas II of RussiaNicholas II of RussiaNicholas II was the last Emperor of Russia, Grand Prince of Finland, and titular King of Poland. His official short title was Nicholas II, Emperor and Autocrat of All the Russias and he is known as Saint Nicholas the Passion-Bearer by the Russian Orthodox Church.Nicholas II ruled from 1894 until...
- Nicholas of TolentinoNicholas of TolentinoSaint Nicholas of Tolentino , known as the Patron of Holy Souls, was an Italian saint and mystic.-Biography:...
- Nicholas is also the name of five popes (Pope Nicholas IPope Nicholas IPope Nicholas I, , or Saint Nicholas the Great, reigned from April 24, 858 until his death. He is remembered as a consolidator of papal authority and power, exerting decisive influence upon the historical development of the papacy and its position among the Christian nations of Western Europe.He...
, Pope Nicholas IIPope Nicholas IIPope Nicholas II , born Gérard de Bourgogne, Pope from 1059 to July 1061, was at the time of his election the Bishop of Florence.-Antipope Benedict X:...
, Pope Nicholas IIIPope Nicholas IIIPope Nicholas III , born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, Pope from November 25, 1277 to his death in 1280, was a Roman nobleman who had served under eight Popes, been made cardinal-deacon of St...
, Pope Nicholas IVPope Nicholas IVPope Nicholas IV , born Girolamo Masci, was Pope from February 22, 1288 to April 4, 1292. A Franciscan friar, he had been legate to the Greeks under Pope Gregory X in 1272, succeeded Bonaventure as Minister General of his religious order in 1274, was made Cardinal Priest of Santa Prassede and...
, and Pope Nicholas VPope Nicholas VPope Nicholas V , born Tommaso Parentucelli, was Pope from March 6, 1447 to his death in 1455.-Biography:He was born at Sarzana, Liguria, where his father was a physician...
), Antipope Nicholas VAntipope Nicholas VNicholas V, born Pietro Rainalducci was an antipope in Italy from 12 May 1328 to 25 July 1330 during the pontificate of Pope John XXII at Avignon. He was the last Imperial antipope, that is, set up by a Holy Roman Emperor.-Life:Rainalducci was born at Corvaro, an ancient stronghold near Rieti in...
and four Patriarchs of Constantinople of which best known are Nicholas MystikosNicholas MystikosNicholas I Mystikos or Nicholas I Mysticus was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from March 901 to February 906 and from May 912 to his death in 925. His feast day in the Orthodox Church is May 16.Nicholas was born in the Italian Peninsula and had become a friend of the Patriarch Photios...
, and Nicholas III GrammatikosPatriarch Nicholas III of ConstantinopleNicholas III Grammatikos or Grammaticus was an Eastern Orthodox patriarch of Constantinople .Educated in Constantinople, Nicholas spent much of his early years in Pisidian Antioch, where it is believed he took his monastic vows. He eventually left the city around 1068 when it was threatened by... - Nicholas TseNicholas TseNicholas Tse is a Hong Kong singer-songwriter, actor and musician, and son of actor Patrick Tse. He is a member of the Emperor Entertainment Group...
(謝霆鋒，born 1980), Hong Kong singer and actor. - Nicholas "Nick" CleggNick CleggNicholas William Peter "Nick" Clegg is a British Liberal Democrat politician who is currently the Deputy Prime Minister, Lord President of the Council and Minister for Constitutional and Political Reform in the coalition government of which David Cameron is the Prime Minister...
(born 1967), British politician - Nick JonasNick JonasNicholas Jerry "Nick" Jonas is an American singer-songwriter, musician and actor best known as one of the Jonas Brothers, a pop-rock band he formed with his brothers Joe and Kevin. The Jonas Brothers originally started as an attempted solo singing career for Nick, but the record producer liked the...
(born 1992), Singer & Songwriter - Nicholas Charles SparksNicholas Sparks (author)Nicholas Charles Sparks is an internationally-bestselling American novelist and screenwriter. He has 16 published novels, with thematic ideas that include cancer, death and love. Six have been adapted to film, including Message in a Bottle, A Walk to Remember, The Notebook, Nights in Rodanthe,...
(born 1965), American novelist, screenwriter - Nicholas Sparks (politician)Nicholas Sparks (politician)Nicholas Sparks was an early landholder of Ottawa, Canada who owned most of the lands in the present day commercial core of Downtown Ottawa.Sparks was born in Darrah parish, County Wexford in Ireland and came to Canada in 1816...
(1794-1862), American politician.
Saints
- Santa ClausSanta ClausSanta Claus is a folklore figure in various cultures who distributes gifts to children, normally on Christmas Eve. Each name is a variation of Saint Nicholas, but refers to Santa Claus...
— equivalent of St. Nicholas - Saint Nicholas The Duc Bui, one of the Vietnamese MartyrsVietnamese MartyrsThe Vietnamese Martyrs, also known as the Martyrs of Tonkin, Martyrs of Annam , Andrew Dung-Lac and Companions , or Martyrs of Indochina, are saints on the Roman Catholic calendar of saints canonized by Pope John Paul II...
- Saint Nicholas of FlueNicholas of FlueSaint Nicholas of Flüe was a Swiss hermit and ascetic who is the patron saint of Switzerland. He is sometimes invoked as "Brother Klaus."...
- Saint Nicholas of Japan
- Saint NicholasSaint NicholasSaint Nicholas , also called Nikolaos of Myra, was a historic 4th-century saint and Greek Bishop of Myra . Because of the many miracles attributed to his intercession, he is also known as Nikolaos the Wonderworker...
of Myra, also known as SinterklaasSinterklaasSinterklaas is a traditional Winter holiday figure still celebrated today in the Low Countries, including the Netherlands and Belgium, as well as French Flanders and Artois...