# Nichols (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/nichols/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname transferred from the given name.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | not recorded |
| Type | patronymic, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 145,584 |
| US rank (2010) | 189 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 2,121 people |
| Change since 2000 | +2.6% (141,936 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈnɪkəlz/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Nicholds, Nicholls, Nickalls, Nickells, Nickels, Nickolds, Nickolls, Nickols, Nicolls |

## Etymology

From Nichol, medieval vernacular form of the given name Nicholas + the patronymic suffix -s.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Nichols in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 82% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 12% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.4% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.5% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.8% |
| Two or more races | 2.0% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Nichols in the United States, Australia, the United Kingdom and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

## People named Nichols

- Mike Nichols, American director and comedian (1931–2014)
- Nichelle Nichols, American actress (1932–2022)
- Rachel Nichols, American actress and model (born 1980)
- Mitch Nichols, Australian association football player
- Marisol Nichols, American actress
- Austin Nichols, American actor and director (born 1980)
- Vincent Nichols, British cardinal
- Jeff Nichols, American film director
- George Nichols, American actor and film director (1864-1927)
- Barbara Nichols, American actress (1928-1976)
- Dudley Nichols, American screenwriter (1895-1960)
- Taylor Nichols, American actor

and 30 more on Wikidata.

## Similar surnames

Nicholas, Nicholls, Nicholes, Nicholson, Nicolas, Nickels, Nickles, Nickelson, Nuckols, Nicolosi, Nicklas, Nickols.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.