| Matthias | Nikolas | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | gift of Yahweh | Victory of the people |
| Origin | greek | Greek |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | mə-THY-əs | NIK-oh-lus |
| Syllables | 3 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1937 |
| Peak year | 2025 (854) | 2004 (1,060) |
| In 2025 | 854 | 375 |
| Trend | Near its peak | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Matthias | Nikolas |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 4,176 | 2,564 |
| 2010s | 5,144 | 5,133 |
| 2000s | 2,056 | 7,812 |
| 1990s | 825 | 5,946 |
| 1980s | 527 | 1,955 |
| 1970s | 258 | 502 |
| 1960s | 179 | 107 |
| 1950s | 80 | 5 |
| 1940s | 69 | 5 |
| 1930s | 64 | 6 |
| 1920s | 118 | 0 |
| 1910s | 142 | 0 |
| 1890s | 15 | 0 |
| 1880s | 23 | 0 |
Greek form of the Hebrew name Mattithiah/Mattathias, from mattath 'gift' + yah (Yahweh), i.e. 'gift of God'. A cognate of Matthew rather than a separate meaning.
Nikolas means “victory of the people,” the Greek root of Nicholas.
Matthias is more popular than Nikolas today: about 854 US babies were given the name Matthias in 2025, compared with 375 named Nikolas.
Matthias means gift of Yahweh (greek origin), while Nikolas means Victory of the people (Greek origin).
In US records, Matthias first appears in 1880 and Nikolas in 1937, so Matthias has the longer recorded history.