Miko
Feminine · “Shrine maiden”
Miko is given to both — 613 girls and 980 boys since 1880. See Miko as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Miko is a Japanese word for a shrine maiden, a Hungarian surname, and a short form of Michaela — three unrelated things arriving at four letters. Its American peak is 1971, at a moment when Japanese words were newly familiar to a wide American audience.
How old is the name Miko?
Miko first appears in US birth records in 1963 — 62 years ago. The typical Miko alive today was born around 1997, making them about 28 years old. About 600 people named Miko are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Miko most popular?
Miko peaked in 1971, reaching #2477 nationally. Today it ranks #5410, 2,933 places below that high. See the whole 1971 chart.
Where it comes from
From 巫女 to Miko
Our story of Miko
Names sometimes arrive not from a community but from a period of general interest, and this one has that shape. American familiarity with Japanese words rose sharply from the 1960s: trade, travel, film and a fashion for Japanese design put words like origami, ikebana, kimono and miko into English-language circulation in a way they had not been before. Miko appears in the American birth records in that window and peaks in 1971. It is also, in exactly the same years, an available short form of Michaela, which was itself rising. So the name has a Japanese look, an English use and a Hungarian surname sitting quietly behind it, and no single account covers every bearer.
Meaningscholars disagree
Shrine maiden, if Japanese
Japanese miko, written 巫女, is a young woman who serves at a Shinto shrine, and the word is settled in that sense; it is not, however, a common Japanese given name. Hungarian Mikó is a surname from a form of Michael. And Miko serves as a short form of Michaela and Mikaela in English. The record does not distinguish which produced an American bearer.
How the name formed
- 巫女
- Miko
Related forms: みこ · Mikó · Michaela
Pronouncing Miko
MEE-koh
Two syllables, stress on the first. Japanese gives both vowels equal weight; American speakers say MIK-oh with a short first vowel about as often as MEE-koh.
Nicknames for Miko
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1963
- Most girls named
- 197130 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2477reached in 1971
- Change vs 2024
- +228.6%23 in 2025, from 7
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Miko in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- みこ in Japanese — transliteration
- Mikó in Hungarian — related form
- Michaela in English — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California.
Mikos among us
people named Miko are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 69,881 born in 2025 was named Miko
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Bonnell test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Miko's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Bonnell climbed just as high around 1922, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Bonnell's path sketches the road Miko is walking now.
Miko sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Miko beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Miko in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Four letters and two open syllables travel anywhere.
- Michaela stands behind it as a formal option.
- Everyone can say it after one hearing.
- The Japanese word is an occupation rather than a personal name.
- The first vowel is said two ways in American use.
- Miko, Mika and Miki are close enough to be confused.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Miko
Feminine · #5410 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Mikos are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 600 people named Miko are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Miko in 2025?
- Miko ranks #5410 among US girl names in 2025, with 23 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Miko?
- About 1 in every 69,881 US girls born in 2025 was named Miko — 23 in all.
- Will my child share the name Miko with classmates?
- Miko will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Miko
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Aina#5410 · Sherry#5410 · Kathia#5410 · Taj#5410 · Analicia#5410 · Divya#5410 · Halimah#5410 · Leo#5410
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Miko? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Miko and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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