Nijland, Frisian name Nijlân, started in the 13th century and grew concentrically around a center in which was a church, the St. Nicolaas. The tower of today's church is its oldest part, dating from the late-13th century. In the 17th century it was heightened and in 1866 straightened. The church itself was replaced in the second quarter of the 16th century, except for a part of it which is now part of the north wall. The current Gothic church has a one-aisled nave and a five-sided choir. In the south wall a portal was added in ca. 1600, which in 1664 was decorated with a tympanum.