Nilson Surname

66,063rd
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 7,551 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
American Samoa

Nilson Surname Definition:

'son of Neil,' which see. There were at least two families of this name of independent origin-Neilson of Craigcaffie, Ayrshire, and Neilson of Caithness. (1) The Neilsons of Craigcaffie are said to have traced their descent from Neil, earl of Carrick, husband of Margaret Stewart, who died in 1256.

Read More About This Surname

Nilson Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States3,8731:93,58610,508
Brazil7231:296,09211,405
Sweden6311:15,6051,331
Canada3251:113,37112,083
Russia2401:600,51352,991
Germany2141:376,19435,529
Argentina1721:248,50820,139
Denmark1501:37,6313,923
Australia1411:191,45919,007
England1131:493,08031,588
Estonia1111:11,9081,764
New Zealand961:47,1707,685
Norway811:63,4859,023
South Africa791:685,79449,549
Uruguay701:49,0255,488
Nigeria631:2,811,79089,258
Chile581:303,7328,727
Belarus461:206,54526,052
Dominican Republic391:267,5119,432
Angola361:749,7002,649
France291:2,290,439180,028
Finland271:203,58217,121
Indonesia241:5,510,383253,014
India181:42,614,743461,117
Thailand171:4,155,197336,594
Zimbabwe161:964,89061,721
Philippines111:9,203,475207,772
Papua New Guinea81:1,019,215101,897
Spain81:5,844,00486,878
Kazakhstan81:2,210,31295,036
Malaysia71:4,213,461150,293
Liberia61:734,75629,369
Netherlands61:2,814,529101,176
Mexico61:20,687,70153,861
American Samoa61:9,2931,961
Honduras61:1,469,4075,474
Poland51:7,601,750167,855
Italy51:12,231,338126,430
Venezuela51:6,040,81547,898
Switzerland51:1,642,58387,307
Lithuania51:606,91821,375
Portugal41:2,604,56016,079
Scotland41:1,338,45435,497
Wales31:1,031,51134,732
Pakistan31:59,547,962132,569
Bulgaria31:2,326,30254,089
Peru31:10,594,70845,902
Guatemala21:8,041,3349,698
Austria21:4,257,71899,224
United Arab Emirates21:4,581,13693,443
Ukraine21:22,761,348425,733
Japan21:63,922,14662,827
Taiwan11:23,444,74693,622
China11:1,367,321,56651,149
DR Congo11:73,879,570260,543
Transnistria11:474,69917,893
Costa Rica11:4,780,06913,345
Tunisia11:610,62630,336
Bolivia11:10,616,43417,077
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
Zambia11:15,849,92253,989
Belize11:355,4743,977
Belgium11:11,496,644167,539
Azerbaijan11:9,649,12247,873
Greece11:11,079,790145,225
Ivory Coast11:23,071,23276,679
Iceland11:380,09011,096
Kenya11:46,179,900103,372
Latvia11:2,050,04660,295
Ireland11:4,708,93929,543
Hungary11:9,816,27773,288
Moldova11:3,561,36878,271
Greenland11:56,3791,133
Nicaragua11:6,021,0908,768
Cyprus11:884,87613,055
Ghana11:27,020,69223,742
Panama11:3,912,25817,195
Georgia11:3,745,54547,852
Paraguay11:7,236,74616,511
Ecuador11:15,905,84650,210
Puerto Rico11:3,550,1399,109
Singapore11:5,507,70347,049
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
South Korea11:51,240,2568,015
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland251:177,1958,871
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England1671:145,96013,001
Scotland641:58,4883,746
Wales21:784,20816,349
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States2,7281:18,4092,326

Nilson (166,037) may also be a first name.

Nilson Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

'son of Neil,' which see. There were at least two families of this name of independent origin-Neilson of Craigcaffie, Ayrshire, and Neilson of Caithness. (1) The Neilsons of Craigcaffie are said to have traced their descent from Neil, earl of Carrick, husband of Margaret Stewart, who died in 1256. Instead of the usual Gaelic prefix mac they added the word son to Neil, hence Neilson (M'Kerlie. I, p. 136; Agnew, I, p. 83). Sometime after 1314 the lands of Craigcaffie were granted by royal charter to John, son of Neil Carrick, who took the name of Neilson as his patronymic (Dumfries and Galloway Nat. Hist, & Ant. Soc., Trans., 3. ser. XVII, p. 184). John filius Nigelli appears in Berwickshire in reign of Robert I (RMS., I, 18), and Nigellus Nelsoun had charter of the lands of Cragcathy from James 111 in 1474 (M'Kerlie, I, p. 136). Neilsons in the reign of James v are said to have been at that time hereditary crowners of Bute for two hundred years (Dobie, Pont, p. 225). Craigcaffie was erected into a barony in the sixteenth century and remained in possession of the family till well on into the eighteenth. Morys Neelsoun had a safe conduct into England in 1424, and Henry Nelsone, merchant in Edinbergh, is recorded in 1438 (Blair, IV, 964, 1115). John Neilsone witnessed promulgation of a papal bull at Linlithgow, 1461 (Soltre, p. 63), another John Neylsone was tenant under the bishop of Glasgow, 1510 (Rental). Andrew Neleson was 'dekin of baxsteris' in Stirling, 1546 (SBR., p. 277), and John Neilsoun was a baker in Glasgow, 1554 (Protocols, I). Gilbert Neilsoun appears in Meikfas, 1607 (Retours, Kirkcudbright, 76), and John Nilsoune of Corsock was retoured heir of Robert Neilsoune of Corsock, his father, 1654 (ibid., 263). John Nilsone in Tinwald was examined for the Test, 1685 (RPC., 3. ser. XI, p. 434), and Jean Nilson is recorded in parish of Tuynhame, 1684 (ibid., IX, p. 473). (2) Nele Nelsoun had grant of lands in Creich, Gerloch, and others in the sheriffdom of Innrnmys in 1429 for his homage and service in the captere of his brother, Thomas Nelesoun, a rebel (OPS., IX, p. 686). William Allan Neilson (b. 1869), president-emeritus of Smith College, Northampton, Massachusetts, was born in Doune, Perthshire. Neillsone 1706, Neilstoun 1707, Neylsone 1558, Nylson 1555; Nelsonne.

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

(Danish, Swedish) The son of Nils (champion).

Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

The son of Neil.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

The son of Neil.

The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames (1862) by Clifford Stanley Sims (1839-1896)

Nilson Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Nilson Come From? nationality or country of origin

The surname Nilson (Georgian: ნილსონ, Marathi: सोन, Oriya: ନିଲସନ, Russian: Нильсон) is found in The United States more than any other country or territory. It can also be rendered in the variant forms:. Click here to see other possible spellings of Nilson.

How Common Is The Last Name Nilson? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 66,063rd most frequently used family name internationally. It is borne by approximately 1 in 965,110 people. This last name occurs predominantly in The Americas, where 70 percent of Nilson live; 56 percent live in North America and 55 percent live in Anglo-North America. Nilson is also the 6,337th most frequently held first name internationally It is held by 166,037 people.

The surname is most common in The United States, where it is held by 3,873 people, or 1 in 93,586. In The United States Nilson is most frequent in: California, where 13 percent are found, Utah, where 9 percent are found and Washington, where 8 percent are found. Apart from The United States Nilson is found in 83 countries. It is also found in Brazil, where 10 percent are found and Sweden, where 8 percent are found.

Nilson Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The incidence of Nilson has changed over time. In The United States the number of people carrying the Nilson surname grew 142 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it contracted 32 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Scotland it contracted 94 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Wales it grew 150 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Ireland it contracted 96 percent between 1901 and 2014.

Nilson Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those bearing the last name is principally Anglican (52%) in Ireland and Orthodox (86%) in Russia.

In The United States those bearing the Nilson surname are 14.69% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than the national average, with 61.46% registered to vote for the political party.

The amount Nilson earn in different countries varies markedly. In Norway they earn 4.16% less than the national average, earning 331,677 kr per year; in South Africa they earn 41.25% more than the national average, earning R 335,664 per year; in United States they earn 1.84% more than the national average, earning $43,942 USD per year and in Canada they earn 0.42% less than the national average, earning $49,474 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Nilsson92190,882/
Nielson9219,683/
Nillson92110/
Nil'son923/
Nilshon923/
Nihlson922/
Nilsone921/
Nilszon921/
Nlson915/
Nielsson86628/
Nilsonne8620/
Nillsson8611/
Nilleson861/
Nielszon861/
Nilssone861/
Niellson860/
Niehlson860/
Nelson83789,353/
Nilsen8349,740/
Nilsén83206/
Nilzon83122/
Nilsom83113/
Nlsson8373/
Nélson8349/
Nilßon8333/
Nilsan8323/
Nylson8312/
Nleson8311/
Niljon833/
Nilxon831/
Nilsun831/
Nilsèn831/
Nèlson831/
Nilcon831/
Nielsen77338,225/
Nilssen774,312/
Nilsang77411/
Nelsson77253/
Nellson77139/
Nelsone7768/
Nielsén7739/
Nillsen7727/
Nilsung7721/
Niljong7718/
Nihlzon7712/
Nilssén7711/
Neelson7710/
Nelsion7710/
Nehlson779/
Nelsonn778/
Nelsoen778/
Neslson778/
Nel'son777/
Nelsong776/
Nielzon776/
Nilhzon776/
Nelsoon775/
Nelsont775/
Nilsand775/
Nilzzon775/
Gnelson774/
Nelsjon774/
Nilsund774/
Nelsosn773/
Hnelson773/
Nelsond773/
Nilszén773/
Gnilsen772/
Nielsan772/
Nelsojn772/
Nnelson772/
Nelsohn772/
Nilchon772/
Nelsonq771/
Nilssan771/
Nilssom771/
Nelsonh771/
Nilseen771/
Nilsian771/
Nilssun771/
Nilszen771/
Nillcon771/
Nylsson771/
Nelshon771/
Nilsant771/
Nillsom771/
Neulson770/
Nilssonová753/
Nlxon732/
Nlsan731/
Nielssen71138/
Niellsen713/
D'Nelson713/
Nelsonne712/
Nglisson711/
Noelsson711/
Nelsonbp711/
Nillsang711/
Nelleson710/
Nelsen6710,114/
Nelsan67297/
Nilzén67179/
Nelsom67140/
Nilzen6782/
Nelsén6754/
Nälsén6734/
Nülsen6722/
Nelzon6720/
Niljan6716/
Nylsen6711/
Nelsun679/
Nelcon679/
Nilcen677/
Nilcan677/
Nilsum676/
Nilcun675/
Nelsonová675/
Nelxon673/
Nilsem673/
Niljun673/
Neljon672/
Nilsenová672/
Nelsonova672/
Nllsen671/
Nelsón671/
Nelßon671/
Nëlşon671/
Nílsen671/
Nlchon671/
Nilsam671/
Nellesson670/

Nilson Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
Nilson in the Georgian language
ნილსონnilson-
Nilson in the Oriya language
ନିଲସନnilasana-
Nilson in the Marathi language
सोनsona-
Nilson in the Russian language
Нильсонnilson-

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Nilson
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis