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

Nikitin, 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 Nikitin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nikitin in America

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

The Nikitin 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 Nikitin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nikitin 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 Nikitin

The surname Nikitin is of Russian origin, derived from the personal name Nikita, which is a diminutive form of the Greek name Niketas. The name Niketas means "victor" or "conqueror" in Greek. The suffix "-in" or "-yn" is a common patronymic ending in Russian surnames, indicating "son of."

Nikitin is a widespread surname in Russia, particularly in the central and northern regions. It first appeared in historical records during the 14th century, when the use of hereditary surnames became more common among the Russian nobility and urban classes.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Nikitin can be found in the 15th-century Novgorod Chronicles, which mention a merchant named Afanasy Nikitin. He is renowned for his travel account, "The Journey Beyond Three Seas," which describes his journey to India in the late 15th century.

Another notable individual with the surname Nikitin was Ivan Nikitin (1824-1861), a Russian poet and writer. He is best known for his socially conscious poetry, which often criticized the injustices and inequalities of the time.

In the 18th century, a renowned Russian architect named Andrey Nikitin (1690-1759) designed several churches and palaces in St. Petersburg, including the Church of the Resurrection and the Stroganov Palace.

Yevgeny Nikitin (1858-1942) was a prominent Russian historian and archaeologist who made significant contributions to the study of ancient Slavic cultures and the history of the Russian Empire.

A more contemporary figure is Nikolai Nikitin (1923-2022), a Soviet and Russian actor who appeared in numerous films and theater productions throughout his long career, spanning over seven decades.

While the surname Nikitin has its roots in the Russian language and culture, it has also spread to other parts of the world through immigration and intermarriage. However, the name's origins can be traced back to the Slavic regions of Eastern Europe, where it emerged as a patronymic surname during the medieval period.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nikitin

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Nikitin, 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!