Nistor was born into a family of peasants in the Bivolărie hamlet of Vicovu de Sus, Bukovina; in Austria-Hungary at the time, it is now included in Suceava County, Romania.

[1] He then studied Philosophy and Literature at the University of Czernowitz and between 1898 and 1900, he completed his military service in the Austro-Hungarian Army, serving in Polei and in Vienna.

[4] He then moved to teach at the Orthodox High School, making use of the institution's library, better suited to his studies into the history of Moldavia.

In July 1917, he moved to Odessa, in territory held by the Russian Provisional Government, and began teaching Romanian history to the (mostly Bessarabian) students at the University of Novorossiya.

[8] In February 1918, together with other Austro-Hungarian refugees (including Octavian Goga), Nistor departed for Ovidiopol, Cetatea Albă, and then finally reached Chișinău.

In 1938, he broke with the PNL and sided with the National Renaissance Front regime established by King Carol II, and was Minister of Religious Affairs and the Arts in the Fifth Tătărăscu cabinet (November 24, 1939 – May 10, 1940).

[12] Starting October 1940, under the National Legionary State, Nistor taught at the University of Bucharest, becoming the target of Iron Guard persecutions for the support he had given to King Carol.

Some 300 people, mostly Bukovinians and ex-members of the Liberal Party, came to pay respects at his funeral; the religious ceremony was officiated by Nifon Criveanu [ro], previously the metropolitan bishop of Oltenia.

In his native town, Vicovu de Sus, there is a technological high school named after him, as well as a bust of him, which was unveiled in 2002.