This unusual name is of medieval English origin, and is a double diminutive form of the personal name "Nicholas", created from "Nick" or "Nicol", a pet form of the given name, with the diminutive suffix "-in". Nicholas is Greek in origin, derived from the verb "nikan", to conquer, with "laos", people, and was a popular personal name among Christians throughout medieval Europe. This was largely due to the fame of a 4th Century bishop of Lycian origin, about whom a large number of legends grew up, and who was venerated in the Orthodox Church as well as the Catholic. The personal name is first recorded in England in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Nicolaus". The modern surname can be found as Nicklin or Nicklen, mostly in the West Midlands. One John Nicklin was an early emigrant to the New World colonies, leaving London on the "Dorset" in September 1635, bound for the "Bormodos" (Bermudas), and one William Nicklen married Ann North on July 13th 1746 at St. Giles, Cripplegate, London. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Robert Nykelin, (witness), which was dated 1387, The Staffordshire Assize Rolls, during the reign of King Richard 11, "Richard of Bordeaux", 1377 - 1399. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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