Meaning and Origin of: Niles

Boy name origins & meanings

  • Gaelic : Champion
  • Irish : Champion
  • Greek : Victorious people
  • English : Smooth

Family name origins & meanings

  • English : perhaps a patronymic from the medieval personal name Nel or Neal (see Nelson).
  • Possibly a variant of German Neils, a derivative of the personal name Cornelius.
  • John Niles from England was known to have been in Dorchester, MA, as early as 1634 before putting down roots in Braintree, MA, where his grandson Samuel was a Congregational clergyman for many years.