How popular is the baby name Nikau in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Nikau.

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Popularity of the baby name Nikau


Posts that mention the name Nikau

Popular baby names (and Maori baby names) in New Zealand, 2022

Flag of New Zealand
Flag of New Zealand

The island nation of New Zealand is located in the southwestern Pacific Ocean, about 1,200 miles east of Australia.

Last year, New Zealand welcomed a total of 59,711 babies. What were the most popular names among these babies? Isla and Oliver.

Here are New Zealand’s top 50 girl names and top 50 boy names of 2022:

Girl Names

  1. Isla, 246 baby girls
  2. Amelia, 210
  3. Charlotte, 208
  4. Mila, 182
  5. Lily, 180
  6. Ava, 179
  7. Willow, 177
  8. Olivia, 175
  9. Harper, 167
  10. Sophie, 166
  11. Hazel, 164
  12. Mia, 161
  13. Ella, 157
  14. Isabella, 156
  15. Ruby, 149
  16. Chloe, 144
  17. Millie, 137
  18. Zoe, 130
  19. Grace, 128
  20. Lucy, 117 (tie)
  21. Olive, 117 (tie)
  22. Emily, 116
  23. Aria, 115
  24. Freya, 114
  25. Ivy, 111
  26. Evelyn, 110
  27. Georgia, 105 (tie)
  28. Sienna, 105 (tie)
  29. Layla, 102 (tie)
  30. Poppy, 102 (tie)
  31. Matilda, 101 (tie)
  32. Sophia, 101 (tie)
  33. Frankie, 100
  34. Luna, 96
  35. Mackenzie, 95
  36. Ellie, 94
  37. Sadie, 92
  38. Maia, 91
  39. Florence, 87
  40. Riley, 86
  41. Isabelle, 85 (tie)
  42. Margot, 85 (tie)
  43. Maeve, 84
  44. Evie, 83 (tie)
  45. Violet, 83 (tie)
  46. Aurora, 80 (tie)
  47. Billie, 80 (tie)
  48. Daisy, 78
  49. Sofia, 75
  50. Eleanor, 73

Boy Names

  1. Oliver, 274 baby boys
  2. Noah, 262
  3. Leo, 243
  4. Jack, 234
  5. Luca, 222
  6. Theodore, 219
  7. George, 211
  8. Charlie, 195
  9. Hudson, 169 (tie)
  10. William, 169 (tie)
  11. Oscar, 166
  12. Arthur, 160
  13. Elijah, 158
  14. Arlo, 156
  15. Thomas, 151
  16. James, 150
  17. Archie, 146
  18. Henry, 144
  19. Lucas, 140
  20. Hunter, 138
  21. Liam, 136
  22. Mason, 130
  23. Theo, 124
  24. Ezra, 123 (tie)
  25. Max, 123 (tie)
  26. Levi, 121
  27. Cooper, 120
  28. Carter, 114
  29. Hugo, 112
  30. Lachlan, 110
  31. Asher, 109
  32. Beau, 108
  33. Finn, 104
  34. Archer, 103 (tie)
  35. Felix, 103 (tie)
  36. Benjamin, 100 (tie)
  37. Luka, 100 (tie)
  38. Jasper, 94
  39. Luke, 92
  40. Harry, 91
  41. Ethan, 88
  42. Alexander, 87 (tie)
  43. Roman, 87 (tie)
  44. Grayson, 85 (tie)
  45. Harrison, 85 (tie)
  46. Jackson, 83 (3-way tie)
  47. Lincoln, 83 (3-way tie)
  48. Samuel, 83 (3-way tie)
  49. Jacob, 82 (tie)
  50. Louie, 82 (tie)

This is the tenth year in a row that Oliver has been New Zealand’s #1 boy name.

The news release also mentioned that the “most popular gender-neutral name for 2022 was Riley,” which ranked 40th for girls and 51st for boys.

And what about the top Maori baby names?

Maori girl names

  1. Aroha / Te Aroha
  2. Aria
  3. Anahera
  4. Maia
  5. Moana
  6. Kaia
  7. Manaia
  8. Atarangi / Te Atarangi
  9. Ataahua
  10. Marama

Maori boy names

  1. Ariki / Te Ariki / Teariki
  2. Nikau
  3. Wiremu
  4. Rawiri
  5. Mikaere
  6. Manaia
  7. Kai
  8. Manaaki
  9. Kahurangi
  10. Koa

There are a couple of things we need to note about the Maori baby name rankings, though.

First, the Maori rankings don’t cover the same period of time as the national rankings. Instead, they cover births from June 21, 2022, to July 9, 2023. Why? Because these dates are linked to Matariki, or Maori New Year. (The Maori word Matariki refers to both the Pleiades star cluster and to the yearly celebration of the Pleiades’ return to the night sky, in late June or early July).

Second, a more thorough process is now being used to determine which names to include in the Maori rankings. Previously, the only criterion was that the names be made up of letters in the Maori alphabet. Now, on top of that, the names must: end in a vowel, be “carefully considered and checked,” be discussed with a Maori elder, and be reviewed by the Maori Language Commission.

In 2021, the top names overall in New Zealand were Charlotte and Oliver.

Sources: Top Baby Names – New Zealand Government, Aotearoa’s top ten Maori baby names of the year revealed for Matariki, Matariki (the Pleiades) – the Encyclopedia of New Zealand

Image: Adapted from Flag of New Zealand (public domain)

Popular baby names (and Maori baby names) in New Zealand, 2021

Flag of New Zealand
Flag of New Zealand

According to New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs, the most popular baby names in the country last year were Charlotte and Oliver.

Here are New Zealand’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2021:

Girl Names

  1. Charlotte, 227 baby girls
  2. Isla, 214
  3. Amelia, 206
  4. Olivia, 185
  5. Ava, 184
  6. Willow, 180
  7. Lily, 174
  8. Isabella, 171
  9. Mila, 170
  10. Ella, 165

Boy Names

  1. Oliver, 308 baby boys
  2. Noah, 265
  3. Jack, 235
  4. Leo, 234
  5. George, 222
  6. Charlie, 200
  7. Lucas, 190
  8. Theodore, 187
  9. William, 181
  10. Luca, 172

In the girls’ top 10, Isabella and Mila replaced Harper and Sophie.

In the boys’ top 10, Theodore and Luca replaced Thomas and Hunter.

Manaia comes in as the most evenly-split gender-neutral name, at a 50/50 split for boys and girls, with Quinn sitting just below the top of the list.

The top Maori baby names, according to the Te Taura Whiri Maori Language Commission, were…

Maori girl (kotiro) names

  1. Mia, 164 baby girls
  2. Aria, 120
  3. Maia, 97
  4. Aurora, 86
  5. Amaia, 63
  6. Kiara, 52
  7. Kaia, 50
  8. Amara, 44 (tie)
  9. Kora, 44 (tie)
  10. Maria, 43

Maori boy (tama) names

  1. Nikau, 93 baby boys
  2. Ari, 62
  3. Niko, 47
  4. Koa, 46
  5. Mateo, 45
  6. Keanu, 44
  7. Mikaere, 41 (tie)
  8. Manaia, 41 (tie)
  9. Kairo, 27 (tie)
  10. Kiwa, 27 (tie)

It should be noted, however, that not all of these “Maori” names are, in fact, Maori names. They were picked out of New Zealand’s national rankings because they “include vowels and consonants that appear in the Maori alphabet” — not because they correspond to actual Maori words. This is how non-Maori names like Aurora, Maria, Ari and Keanu end up in the Maori rankings.

(The Registrar-General of Births, Deaths and Marriages recently wrote about the difficulties involved in identifying Maori names, and revealed that he might stop releasing Maori rankings altogether after 2021.)

In 2020, the top two names overall in New Zealand were Isla and Oliver.

Sources: Top Baby Names in New Zealand, Charlotte and Oliver were New Zealand’s top baby names in 2021, Most popular Maori baby names for 2021, Top Maori baby names don’t have to be Maori words

Image: Adapted from Flag of New Zealand (public domain)

Popular baby names in New Zealand, 2020

Flag of New Zealand
Flag of New Zealand

According to New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs, the most popular baby names in the country in 2020 were Isla and Oliver.

Here are New Zealand’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2020:

Girl Names

  1. Isla, 243 baby girls
  2. Charlotte, 222
  3. Amelia, 213
  4. Olivia, 208
  5. Willow, 184
  6. Harper, 177
  7. Ava (tie), 175
  8. Lily (tie), 175
  9. Sophie, 168
  10. Ella, 163

Boy Names

  1. Oliver, 315 baby boys
  2. Jack, 261
  3. Noah, 240
  4. Leo, 235
  5. Lucas, 206
  6. George, 197
  7. Charlie, 183
  8. William (tie), 175
  9. Thomas (tie), 175
  10. Hunter, 174

In the girls’ top 10, Lily and Ella replaced Mila and Ruby.

In the boys’ top 10, Hunter replaced James.

Notably, top girl name Isla “first made the top 100 girls’ names in 2004.”

Here are a few other factoids:

Taylor and Darcy are the most evenly split gender-neutral names for 2020, with a 51/49 per cent divide between boys and girls.

There were no Jacindas or Judiths on the top 10 list and no increase in Ashleys despite these names appearing often in the media during 2020.

The top Maori baby names of 2020 were Mia, Aria and Maia for girls and Nikau, Manaia, and Ari for boys.

Back in 2019, the top names were Amelia and Oliver.

Sources: Top Baby Names in New Zealand, Top 2020 baby names: Same name tops list eight years in a row

Image: Adapted from Flag of New Zealand (public domain)

Popular baby names in New Zealand, 2019

Flag of New Zealand
Flag of New Zealand

According to New Zealand’s Department of Internal Affairs, the most popular baby names in the country in 2019 were Amelia and Oliver.

Here are New Zealand’s top 10 girl names and top 10 boy names of 2019:

Girl Names

  1. Amelia, 255 baby girls
  2. Charlotte, 248
  3. Isla, 232
  4. Olivia, 225
  5. Ruby, 206
  6. Sophie, 190
  7. Harper, 188
  8. Mila, 187
  9. Willow, 186
  10. Ava, 185

Boy Names

  1. Oliver, 335 baby boys
  2. Noah, 297
  3. Leo, 257
  4. Jack, 251
  5. Lucas, 247
  6. George, 232
  7. James, 210 (tie)
  8. William, 210 (tie)
  9. Thomas, 202
  10. Charlie, 192

In the girls’ top 10, Ruby, Sophie, Mila and Willow replaced Ella, Isabella, Emily and Mia.

In the boys’ top 10, Thomas and Charlie replaced Hunter and Mason.

In 2018, the top names were Charlotte and Oliver.

Finally, the top Maori baby names in New Zealand were Mia, Aria and Maia for girls and Nikau (after the nikau palm tree), Mikaere, and Ari for boys.

Sources: Top Baby Names in New Zealand, New Zealand’s most popular baby names for 2019

Image: Adapted from Flag of New Zealand (public domain)