Niece last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Niece

A surname derived from the Middle English word "nece" meaning niece or female relative.

Niece, 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 Niece surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Niece in America

Niece is the 28498th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Niece surname appeared 837 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 Niece.

We can also compare 2010 data for Niece 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 28498 23884 17.62%
Count 837 987 -16.45%
Proportion per 100k 0.28 0.37 -27.69%

The history of the last name Niece

The surname "NIECE" is of French origin, believed to have originated in the region of Normandy during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the old French word "niece," which means "niece" or "female relative." This word has its roots in the Latin word "neptis," which also means "niece" or "granddaughter."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a person named "Nichole le Niece" is listed as a landholder in the county of Hampshire, England. This suggests that the surname may have been introduced to England by Norman settlers following the Norman Conquest of 1066.

During the 13th century, the surname appeared in various records across northern France and England, with spellings such as "Nece," "Nise," and "Nyse." These variations likely arose due to regional dialects and the phonetic nature of early surname spellings.

Notable historical figures with the surname "NIECE" include:

  1. Sir Henry Niece (c. 1320-1381), an English knight and landowner from Lincolnshire, who served as a member of Parliament during the reign of Edward III.

  2. Jean Niece (c. 1450-1512), a French cleric and scholar who served as the Bishop of Avranches in Normandy.

  3. Robert Niece (c. 1580-1655), an English composer and organist who held positions at various churches in London during the early 17th century.

  4. Marie-Madeleine Niece (1678-1720), a French painter and engraver known for her portraits and religious works, active in Paris during the late 17th and early 18th centuries.

  5. William Niece (1789-1857), an American politician and lawyer who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York in the 1840s.

The surname "NIECE" has also been associated with various place names, such as Niece-sur-Mer, a coastal town in Normandy, and the village of Niece in the Vosges region of eastern France. These locations may have influenced the spread and adoption of the surname in their respective areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Niece

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

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 Niece was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 93.19% 780
Non-Hispanic Black Only 2.51% 21
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.15% 18
Hispanic Origin 1.67% 14

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 Niece has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 93.19% 93.52% -0.35%
Black 2.51% 3.65% -37.01%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 2.15% 1.32% 47.84%
Hispanic 1.67% 0.81% 69.35%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

"Niece last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/niece-surname-popularity/.

"Niece last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/niece-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Niece last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/niece-surname-popularity/.

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