Nilson is both a surname and a given name variant of Nelson.
It thus can also be an anglicized version of the Scandinavian surnames Nilsen, Nielsen, and Nilsson. Notable people with the name include:
Surname Anton Nilson (1887–1989), Swedish militant socialist Carlos Nilson, one of the members of the beat and rock band Los Naufragos Cynthia Nilson. songwriter and singer from Buenos Aires, Argentina Gunnar Nilson (1872–1951), Swedish physician Johan Ernst Nilson, Swedish explorer interested in environmental and climate-related issues John Nilson, Canadian politician in Saskatchewan Lars Fredrik Nilson (1840–1899), Swedish chemist who discovered scandium in 1879 Lawrence Nilson, the Commander-in-chief of Bombay from 6 January 1785 to 6 September 1788 Marcus Nilson (born 1978), Swedish professional ice hockey player Mitch Nilsson (born 1991), Australian professional baseball player Peter Nilson (1937–1998), Swedish astronomer and novelist
Given name Nílson (footballer, born 1965), Nilson Esidio Mora, Brazilian football forward Nilson (footballer, born 1975), Nilson Corrêia Júnior, Brazilian football goalkeeper Nilson Cortes (born 1977), Colombian football striker Nilson (footballer, born 1987), Nilson Taty Sousa Vaz, Santomean football goalkeeper Nilson (footballer, born 1989), Nilson Ricardo da Silva Junior, Brazilian football defensive midfielder Nilson (footballer, born 1991), José Nilson dos Santos Silva, Brazilian football striker Nilson (Musician, Born 1981), Nilson Jaime Hernandez, Mexican Artist. Was part of the group called Super Bandon Pobreza (2003-2018). He is currently a founder and bassist they group called La Ley Norteña (2019-Present)
See also Nilson Nelson Gymnasium, an indoor sporting arena in Brasília, Brazil The Adventures of Nilson Groundthumper and Hermy, a comic series by Stan Sakai