Given name & surname
Colette
“of the victorious people”
Colette has the intimacy of a shortened name and a literary association through the French novelist.
Original FrenchNicholas
Meaning & origin
What it means
One French interpretation is “of the victorious people.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is French.
How it developed
In French usage, Colette is a diminutive of Nicholas. In French usage, Colette is a diminutive of Nicolas.
The story
The novelist Colette helped give the name wider currency from the 1920s onward. Its formation has more than one route: it can shorten Nicolette or develop from the medieval name Col or Colle.
Colette through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 27,987
- 0 boys · 27,987 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 962 babies
- 2025
- 962
- #316 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +26%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 962 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 316 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 25.9% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (120). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 21,691 as a first name in 2020; 210 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Colette’s family of names
In French usage, Colette is a diminutive of Nicholas. Colette has an alternative spelling in Collette. In French usage, Colette is a diminutive of Nicolas.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Colette has relatives in 6 languages. Lines run from its French roots to each of them.
Nicknames & forms 9
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Nicholasfull form · French
- Nicolasfull form · French
- Nicolettefull form · French
- Collettevariant
- Colettavariant · Italian, Spanish
- Collettavariant
- Coletavariant · Spanish
- Coletevariant
Show 1 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Colette
- Stéphane AudranFrench actress (1932–2018)
- Colette BessonFrench sprinter1946–2005
- Colette FleschLuxembourgish politician (1937-2026)
- Colette MarchandFrench dancer and actress (1925-2015)
- Colette AvitalIsraeli diplomat and politicianborn 1939
- Colette BrossetFrench actress (1922-2007)
- Colette of Corbie15th c. French abbess: founded Colettine Poor Clares1381–1447
- Colette MazeFrench pianist1914–2023
- Colette RenardFrench actress (1924-2010)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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