2000
#5,525
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,783
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.14
Uncommon Last name
Nicolas
French occupational surname referring to a victor or conqueror of the people.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,685 Americans carry the last name Nicolas. That puts it at #3,707 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,078 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Nicolas surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Nicolas with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 32,078
Census rank
#3,707
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.3K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,318 bearers of the surname Nicolas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3707th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Nicolas, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 33.9%. The next largest groups are Black (29.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (18.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nicolas
The surname Nicolas is of French origin and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Christian name Nicholas, which comes from the Greek name Nikolaos, meaning "victory of the people." The name was widely used in France during the medieval period and was often given to children in honor of St. Nicholas, the patron saint of children.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Nicolas can be found in the Domesday Book, a record of landowners in England compiled by order of William the Conqueror in 1086. The book mentions a landowner named Nicolaus, which was likely a variant spelling of the French surname Nicolas.
In the 13th century, the surname Nicolas appeared in various records throughout France, often associated with families from the northern regions of the country. One notable example is Philippe de Nicolas, a 13th-century French knight who fought in the Crusades.
During the Renaissance period, the surname Nicolas gained prominence with the birth of Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543), the famous Polish astronomer who revolutionized the understanding of the solar system by proposing the heliocentric model.
Another notable figure with the surname Nicolas was Claude Nicolas Ledoux (1736-1806), a French architect and urban planner who designed many iconic buildings in Paris, including the Saltworks at Arc-et-Senans.
In the 19th century, the surname Nicolas was associated with several prominent artists and writers, such as Adolphe Nicolas (1803-1887), a French painter known for his historical and religious works, and Auguste Nicolas (1807-1876), a French poet and dramatist.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Nicolas in modern times was Nicolas de Staël (1914-1955), a French painter known for his abstract expressionist works and his influence on the art world of the mid-20th century.
Throughout history, the surname Nicolas has been prevalent in various regions of France, with some variations in spelling, such as Nicolle, Nicolleau, and Nicolet. These variations often reflected regional dialects or local traditions in naming conventions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nicolas
Among Census respondents with the surname Nicolas, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 33.9%. The next largest groups are Black (29.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (18.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Nicolas bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Nicolas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino33.9% · 3,161
- Black or African American29.6% · 2,754
- Asian and Pacific Islander18.9% · 1,763
- White14.5% · 1,354
- Two or more races2.7% · 252
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 34
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nicolas
Nicolas appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#3,951
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,006
+3,223 bearers (+55.7%)
Per 100,000 3.05
Rank movement Up 1,574 places
2020
#3,707
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,318
+312 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 3.12
Rank movement Up 244 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,525 | 5,783 | 2.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,951 | 9,006 | 3.05 | +3,223 bearers (+55.7%) | Up 1,574 places |
| 2020 | #3,707 | 9,318 | 3.12 | +312 bearers (+3.5%) | Up 244 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Nicolas surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #3,951 | #3,707 | 6.2% |
| Count | 9,006 | 9,318 | 3.5% |
| Per 100K | 3.05 | 3.12 | 2.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nicolas bearers went from 9,006 to 9,318 (+3.5% change). The surname moved up 244 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,951 to #3,707.
FAQ
Nicolas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nicolas?
Name Census estimates that about 10,685 living Americans carry the surname Nicolas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,078 residents.
How common is Nicolas?
Nicolas ranks #3,707 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.12 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,318 people with the surname Nicolas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,685), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.12 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Nicolas.
Has Nicolas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nicolas went from 9,006 recorded bearers to 9,318. That is an increase of 312 (+3.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,951 to #3,707.
What does the Census say about the background of Nicolas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nicolas, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 33.9%. The next largest groups are Black (29.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (18.9%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Nicolas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 33.9% (3,161 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nicolas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (33.9%), Black (29.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (18.9%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Nicolas (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Nicolas mean?
French occupational surname referring to a victor or conqueror of the people. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Nicolas (3.12 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Nicolas?
If you just want to know how common the surname Nicolas is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.