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

Nicley, 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 Nicley surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nicley in America

Nicley is the 44270th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nicley surname appeared 486 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 Nicley.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nicley 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 Nicley

The surname Nicley originated in England during the late medieval period, derived from the Old English words "nic" meaning a small horse or pony, and "ley" referring to a meadow or clearing. It was likely an occupational name initially given to someone who worked with ponies or horses in pastures or grazing areas.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1204, which mentions a John Nicley. Another early reference appears in the Hertfordshire Assize Rolls from 1259, listing a Roger Nicley.

In the 13th century, variants of the name such as Niklei, Nycley, and Nykley were also documented in various county records across England. The Nicley surname was particularly prevalent in the counties of Yorkshire, Hertfordshire, and Lincolnshire.

During the late 15th century, the name appeared in the form Nyclye in the Paston Letters, a collection of correspondence written by members of the Paston family of Norfolk. This suggests the name had spread to other regions of England by that time.

Notable individuals with the Nicley surname include John Nicley, a merchant from York who was involved in the wool trade in the early 14th century. Records also show a William Nicley who served as a member of the local militia in Lincolnshire during the English Civil War in the 1640s.

In the 18th century, a Samuel Nicley was born in 1713 in Yorkshire and later became a respected clergyman and author of several religious tracts. Another individual of note was Elizabeth Nicley, born in 1765 in Hertfordshire, who was a pioneer in women's education and founded one of the first schools for girls in London in the early 19th century.

The Nicley surname has also been associated with various place names throughout England, such as Nicley Hill in Yorkshire and Nicley Green in Lancashire, further reinforcing its historical roots and geographic distribution.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nicley

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

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 Nicley 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 Nicley 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 Nicley was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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