Find out how popular the last name Nelon is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Nelon.

Nelon, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Nelon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nelon in America

Nelon is the 48717th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nelon surname appeared 433 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Nelon.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nelon to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Nelon

The surname Nelon has its origins in the ancient Anglo-Saxon culture of Britain. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "ne" meaning "no" and "lon" meaning "land" or "estate." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who did not own any land or property.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Nelon surname can be found in the Domesday Book, a medieval census commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "Nelond," which was likely an early spelling variation.

In the 12th century, records show a William Nelon living in the village of Harewood, Yorkshire. His descendants are thought to have spread the name to other parts of northern England.

During the 14th century, a notable bearer of the Nelon name was John Nelon, a merchant and landowner from the city of Norwich. He is mentioned in several property deeds and legal documents from that time period.

In the late 16th century, a family by the name of Nelon lived in the village of Nether Langwith, Derbyshire. They were landowners and farmers, and their ancestral home was known as Nelon Hall.

One of the most famous individuals with the Nelon surname was Sir Thomas Nelon (1568-1641), a English politician and judge who served as Lord Chief Justice of the Court of Common Pleas during the reign of King Charles I.

Another notable figure was Samuel Nelon (1636-1692), an English clergyman and academic who served as the Master of Pembroke College, Cambridge, and played a significant role in the intellectual life of the university.

In the 19th century, a prominent member of the Nelon family was Mary Nelon (1810-1887), a British philanthropist and social reformer who dedicated her life to improving the living conditions of the poor in London.

The Nelon surname has also been found in other parts of the world, including Ireland, where it is thought to have been anglicized from the Irish Gaelic name "Ó Nialláin."

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nelon

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Nelon.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Nelon was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Nelon has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Nelon was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Nelon, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!