Nisby last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Nisby

A locational surname derived from a place name in Sweden.

Nisby, 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 Nisby surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nisby in America

Nisby is the 98099th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nisby surname appeared 185 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 Nisby.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nisby 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 98099 98770 -0.68%
Count 185 170 8.45%
Proportion per 100k 0.06 0.06 0.00%

The history of the last name Nisby

The surname Nisby originates from the small village of Nisby in Northamptonshire, England during the late 11th century. It is derived from the Old English words "nis" meaning "promontory" and "by" meaning "settlement" or "town", referring to the location's elevated position.

The earliest known record of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled "Nissebi". This document, commissioned by William the Conqueror, provides a survey of landholdings and population across England at the time.

During the 13th century, variations such as "Niseby" and "Nisebi" can be found in medieval tax rolls and parish records from Northamptonshire. One notable bearer from this era was Sir Robert de Nisby (c.1220-1285), a knight who fought in the Second Barons' War against King Henry III.

As people migrated, the name spread to other parts of England, with spellings like "Nisbey" and "Nisbie" emerging. In the 16th century, records show a John Nisby (c.1510-1572) from Yorkshire who was a successful merchant and landowner.

Another prominent figure was Sir Edward Nisby (1629-1699), a Member of Parliament for Northamptonshire during the reign of King Charles II. He was known for his support of the Restoration and advocacy for religious tolerance.

In the 18th century, the name appeared in parts of Scotland, likely through migration from England. One example is Major General Alexander Nisby (1720-1791), a Scottish military officer who served in the British Army during the Seven Years' War and American Revolutionary War.

As the name continued to evolve, spellings such as "Nisbie" and "Niseby" emerged in the 19th century. Reverend John Nisbie (1815-1887) was a notable Scottish minister and author who wrote extensively on theology and church history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nisby

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

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 Nisby was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 16.22% 30
Non-Hispanic Black Only 76.22% 141
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 3.78% 7
Hispanic Origin 3.24% 6

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 16.22% 18.82% -14.84%
Black 76.22% 78.82% -3.35%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 0.00% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Two or More Races 3.78% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic 3.24% (S)% (S)%

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

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

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

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

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

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