girl's name
Colette
ko-LET
- Origin French
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 7
- Popularity Top 1000 (France)
- Births on record 208,008
the United States
#316
2025 births
Colette is a girl's name meaning victory of the people, a French diminutive of Nicole. Our data marks it reviving, and it ranks 316th in the United States and 327th in France — within eleven places of each other.
- Colette is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1937, when 6,635 babies were given the name.
- After peaking in the 1930s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival in France.
- Today about 1 in 3,468 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Colette over time
Births per decade in France, 1900s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 1,190 |
| 1910s | 3,495 |
| 1920s | 21,730 |
| 1930s | 54,300 |
| 1940s | 49,195 |
| 1950s | 33,155 |
| 1960s | 8,810 |
| 1970s | 1,180 |
| 1980s | 355 |
| 1990s | 240 |
| 2000s | 260 |
| 2010s | 695 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 945 |
What Colette means
Colette means victory of the people, carried through Nicole from the Greek. The -ette ending is a French diminutive that adds affection rather than altering the sense.
Where Colette comes from
Colette is a French diminutive of Nicole, the feminine of Nicolas, from the Greek Nikolaos — nike, victory, joined to laos, the people. Saint Colette of Corbie reformed the Poor Clares in the fifteenth century, and her name is the reason the diminutive became a name in its own right. Its modern weight is literary: Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, who published the Claudine novels under her first husband's name before he was exposed as having taken the credit, and who became the first woman given a state funeral in France in 1954.
Colette in use
Colette peaked in France in 1937, when 6,635 babies were registered, and our data marks it reviving. It now ranks 316th in the United States on 962 births, 327th in France on 170 and 1449th in England and Wales on 22, across 208,008 lifetime births in four of the seven markets we track. Its American and French positions sit within eleven ranks of each other, which is unusual and suggests a revival happening on both sides at once.
How popular is Colette?
In 2025, Colette was given to 170 babies in France, ranking #327 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Colette is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Colette
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Colette also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Colette over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Colette
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Colette in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Colette
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Colette — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Colette
What does the name Colette mean?
Victory of the people, carried through Nicole from the Greek nike and laos.
Is Colette short for Nicole?
It is a French diminutive of it, and has been a name in its own right since Saint Colette of Corbie.
Who was the writer Colette?
Sidonie-Gabrielle Colette, the first woman given a state funeral in France, in 1954.
Is Colette coming back?
Our data marks it reviving, at 316th in the United States and 327th in France.
How popular is the name Colette?
In 2025, Colette was given to 170 babies in France, ranking #327 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Is Colette a girl's or a boy's name?
Colette is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Colette?
Colette has 2 syllables.
When was Colette most popular?
Colette peaked in 1937, when 6,635 babies were given the name. After peaking in the 1930s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival.
What are the nicknames for Colette?
Colette is usually shortened to Coco.
Is Colette a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Colette currently ranks #316 in France. After peaking in the 1930s it fell out of use, and is now climbing again — a classic revival. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.