| Nicholas | Timothy | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Victory of the people | Honoring God |
| Origin | Greek | Greek |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | NIK-uh-lus | TIM-uh-thee |
| Syllables | 3 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 1995 (29,160) | 1959 (30,783) |
| In 2025 | 3,115 | 1,734 |
| Trend | Declining | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Nicholas | Timothy |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 20,988 | 10,984 |
| 2010s | 66,811 | 28,234 |
| 2000s | 177,609 | 52,470 |
| 1990s | 275,329 | 107,772 |
| 1980s | 223,308 | 172,835 |
| 1970s | 65,068 | 181,260 |
| 1960s | 22,339 | 276,837 |
| 1950s | 22,614 | 198,324 |
| 1940s | 15,503 | 43,503 |
| 1930s | 9,716 | 5,105 |
| 1920s | 13,608 | 2,960 |
| 1910s | 10,233 | 1,918 |
| 1900s | 1,334 | 647 |
| 1890s | 857 | 650 |
| 1880s | 730 | 693 |
Nicholas comes from the Greek for “victory of the people.” St Nicholas, a 4th-century bishop famed for secret gift-giving, became the model for Santa Claus.
Timothy comes from the Greek Timotheos, “honouring God,” from timē (“honour”) and theos (“god”). Timothy was a young companion of the apostle Paul.
Nicholas is more popular than Timothy today: about 3,115 US babies were given the name Nicholas in 2025, compared with 1,734 named Timothy.
Nicholas means Victory of the people (Greek origin), while Timothy means Honoring God (Greek origin).
In US records, Nicholas first appears in 1880 and Timothy in 1880, so Nicholas has the longer recorded history.