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Marie Lanen
Head of parenting sections (baby, pregnancy, family), psychology and beauty
The most popular first names in France are not (necessarily) those that are most often given. This is the case for this male first name which reached its peak in 1980.
The authors of the book L’Officiel des Prénoms, Stéphanie Rapoport and Claire Tabarly Perrin, analyze a lot of data on first names for this reference book. Thus, they were able to establish the ranking of the 50 most common first names today. Be careful, they differ from the most commonly given first names.
Nicolas, 6th most popular first name today
If for decades Jean was the only male first name borne by more than a million French people, in the future no other first name will experience this fate because the repertoire of first names attributed is increasing at great speed. In the ranking of the experts of the book l’Officiel des Prénoms (First Editions), we find in sixth position the first name Nicolas. The latter had a record year of attribution in 1980.
Nicolas means “victory of the people” in Greek. Many sovereigns, several saints and no less than five popes have borne this first name in Christian countries since the 12th century. In France, it is often found placed in the first ranks, not far from Jean and Pierre, until the end of the 18th century. It was after a long hiatus that it was resurrected in the 1960s, making so many imitators that it reigned on the French charts in the early 1980s. It remained very commonly attributed until the early 2000s. This first name is more easily found in the north of France, where the tradition of Saint-Nicolas has continued. Outside of France, Nicolas and its many variants (Caelan, Nic, Nicaise, Nick, Nickolas, Nicky, Nico, Nicol, Nicolai, Nicolino, Nicolo, Nikita) are very widespread in the Western world, in Russia and in Slavic countries. There are also Breton forms of the first name: Kola, Kolaig, Kolaz, Koldo and Nikolaz.
Nicolas, first name borne by two emblematic figures of History
Saint Nicholas is the name given to the bishop of Myra in Turkey who showed great kindness towards children in the 4th century. In fact, legend has it that he saved orphans from a terrible death. During the feast of Saint Nicholas (December 6), children are rewarded for their good behavior. They receive gifts or sweets. Another lesser-known fact, like the feast of Saint Catherine for old maids, Saint Nicholas is “the vigilant patron of old bachelors”.
Another very popular Nicholas is Nicolaus Copernicus, the Polish astronomer who demonstrated in 1543 that the Earth is not the center of the Universe and that it revolves around the Sun.
Future parents who appreciate classic first names could therefore be seduced by this pretty first name.
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