 Nikolaus Ehlen was born as the son of a wine-grower in Graach an der Mosel near Bernkastel.Already in his youth he felt the urge to become a priest and after his Abitur, he enrolled in the Priestergymnasium (institute of higher education for people wishing to become a priest) in Trier.After two semesters of studying theology he changed his plans and enrolled at the Westfälische Wilhelms-Universität Münster in physics, chemistry, mathematics and philosophy.