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