Nicole Kidman

Kidman in 2011, photo by Helga Esteb / Shutterstock.com

Birth Name: Nicole Mary Kidman

Place of Birth: Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S.

Date of Birth: June 20, 1967

Ethnicity: English, Scottish, Irish, distant German

Nicole Kidman is an Australian-American actress, film producer, and singer. She won the Academy Award for Best Actress for The Hours (2002). She has also starred in the films Bush Christmas, BMX Bandits, Dead Calm, Days of Thunder, Far and Away, Malice, My Life, Batman Forever, To Die For (1995), The Portrait of a Lady, The Peacemaker, Practical Magic, Eyes Wide Shut, Moulin Rouge!, The Others (2001), Dogville, The Human Stain, Cold Mountain, The Stepford Wives, Birth (2004), The Interpreter, Bewitched (2005), The Invasion (2007), Margot at the Wedding, The Golden Compass, Australia (2008), Nine (2009), Rabbit Hole, The Paperboy, Stoker, Grace of Monaco, Paddington, Secret in Their Eyes (2015), Lion (2016), The Killing of a Sacred Deer, The Upside, Destroyer, Boy Erased, the Aquaman franchise, The Goldfinch, Bombshell (2019), The Prom (2020), Being the Ricardos, The Northman, A Family Affair, and Babygirl (2024); in the made-for-tv movie Hemingway & Gellhorn; and on the shows Bangkok Hilton, Big Little Lies, Top of the Lake: China Girl, The Undoing, Nine Perfect Strangers, Special Ops: Lioness, and The Perfect Couple. She has been a goodwill ambassador for UNICEF and UNIFEM. She founded production company Blossom Films.

Nicole was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, U.S., to Australian parents, Janelle Ann (Glenny), a nursing instructor, and Antony Kidman (Antony David Kidman), a psychologist, biochemist, and academic. Her father was then a grad student at the University of Hawai’i at Mānoa. She lived briefly in Washington, D.C., before her parents returned to Sydney, Australia, where she was raised. She has dual citizenship in Australia and the U.S. Her sister is journalist and television presenter Antonia Kidman.

Nicole is married to Australian-born singer, songwriter, guitarist, and musician Keith Urban. She has two children with her former husband, American actor Tom Cruise, including actor Connor Cruise; and two children with Keith.

Nicole’s ancestry includes English, Scottish, and Irish. Her great-great-great-grandparents were among the many Irish people who escaped the Great Famine in Ireland in the 1800s. Having been born in Hawaii, Nicole was given the Hawaiian name Hōkūlani. The name was inspired by a baby elephant born around that time at the Honolulu Zoo. Hōkūlani means “Heavenly Star” in Hawaiian.

In 2006, Nicole was made a Companion of the Order of Australia, Australia’s highest civilian honour.

Nicole’s patrilineal ancestry traces to Kitson Kidman, who was born, c. 1724, in Comberton, Cambridgeshire, England, the son of William Kidman and Ann Kitson.

Nicole’s paternal grandfather was Arthur David Kidman (the son of Arthur Kidman and Victoria Mary/Maryann See/Lee). Nicole’s grandfather Arthur was born in Randwick, New South Wales, and was of approximately three quarters English and one quarter Scottish ancestry. Nicole’s great-grandfather Arthur was the son of Charles Kidman, whose parents were English, from Cambridgeshire, and of Sarah Ann Matthews. Victoria was the daughter of David See/Lee, who was born in Huntingdonshire, England, and of Mary Ann Law, whose parents were Scottish, from Banffshire.

Nicole’s paternal grandmother was Margaret Emily Mary Callachor (the daughter of Austin Samuel Callachor and Julia Bertha Finn). Margaret was born in Randwick, New South Wales. Austin was the son of Phillip Joseph Callachor, whose parents were Irish, from Cavan, and of Teresa Mary Howley. Julia was the daughter of John Edward Finn, who was Irish, and of Mary McEdward McKenzie, whose parents were Scottish, her father from Ross-Shire and her mother from Inverness, Inverness-shire.

Nicole’s maternal grandfather was Arnold Eric Stuart Glenny (the son of Edward Robert Henry Glenny and Agnes Isabel Ladensack). Arnold was born in Kensington, New South Wales, to English parents. Edward was born in Barking, Essex, the son of Samuel Glenny and Emma May Gosling/Gosselin. Agnes was born in Bethnal Green, London, the daughter of Ernest Charles Ladensack and Rose Ann Thompson. Ernest’s grandfather, Johan Christoph Ladensack, who was Nicole’s great-great-great-great-grandfather, was likely German.

Nicole’s maternal grandmother was Gertrude Joyce Hurst (the daughter of James Hurst and May Thornton). James was the son of English parents, James Hurst and Ann Eastham.

Kidman with husband Keith Urban in 2009, photo credit: Edwin Martinez1

Sources: Family history of Nicole Kidman – https://thecarousel.com

Genealogies of Nicole Kidman – http://www.wargs.com
http://www.geni.com

Genealogy of Nicole Kidman (focusing on her father’s side) – http://www.wikitree.com

Obituary of Nicole’s paternal great-grandfather, Arthur Kidman – http://trove.nla.gov.au

Obituary of Nicole’s maternal grandfather, Arnold Eric Stuart Glenny – https://www.newspapers.com

Nicole’s maternal great-grandmother, Agnes Isabel Ladensack, on the 1901 England and Wales Census – https://www.familysearch.org

Marriage record of Nicole’s maternal great-great-grandparents, Ernest Charles Ladensack and Rose Ann Thompson – https://www.familysearch.org

Nicole’s maternal great-great-grandfather, Ernest Charles Ladensack, on the 1851 England and Wales Census – https://www.familysearch.org