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

Nifong, 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 Nifong surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nifong in America

Nifong is the 31150th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nifong surname appeared 745 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 Nifong.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nifong 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 Nifong

The surname NIFONG is believed to have originated in Germany during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "nif," which means "new," and the suffix "-ong," which indicates a place of origin or association. Thus, the name NIFONG may have initially referred to someone who lived in a newly established settlement or was associated with a place called something like "Neufung" or "Neufingen."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name NIFONG can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from the region of Saxony, dating back to the 12th century. In this text, a certain "Conradus de Nifungin" is mentioned, which suggests the existence of a place called Nifungin or a similar variation.

During the 13th century, the NIFONG surname appears in various records across present-day Germany, particularly in the regions of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. For example, a "Heinrich Nifung" is documented in a land registry from the town of Memmingen in 1271, while a "Berthold Nifunger" is mentioned in a chronicle from the city of Freiburg im Breisgau in 1285.

One notable figure bearing the NIFONG surname was Johann Nifong, a German scholar and theologian who lived from 1492 to 1558. He was a prominent figure in the Protestant Reformation and served as a professor at the University of Erfurt.

Another individual of historical significance was Hans Nifong, a German merchant and explorer who was born in Nuremberg in 1510. He is known for his travels to the Americas and his accounts of the indigenous cultures he encountered, which were published in the late 16th century.

In the 17th century, the NIFONG surname spread to other parts of Europe, including the Netherlands and England, likely due to migration and trade. One example is Willem Nifong, a Dutch painter born in 1633 in Amsterdam, who was known for his landscapes and maritime scenes.

Across the Atlantic, the first recorded instance of the NIFONG surname in North America dates back to the early 18th century, when a family of German immigrants settled in Pennsylvania. One of the earliest known individuals was Johannes Nifong, born in 1712, who established a farm in the region known as the Pennsylvania Dutch Country.

Over the centuries, the NIFONG surname has been subject to various spelling variations, such as Nifung, Nifunger, Nyfong, and Nyfung, reflecting the regional dialects and orthographic traditions of different areas where the name was adopted.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nifong

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

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

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

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