Find out how popular the last name Gildea is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Gildea.

Gildea, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Gildea surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gildea in America

Gildea is the 14545th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gildea surname appeared 2,049 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Gildea.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gildea to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Gildea

The surname Gildea has its origins in Ireland, tracing back to the medieval Gaelic clan Ó Giolla Dé, which translates to "descendant of the devotee of God" or "servant of God." This name is derived from the Irish words "giolla" meaning servant and "Dé" meaning God.

The name was first recorded in the late 12th century in County Donegal, located in the northern part of Ireland. It was one of the prominent surnames in the region and was often associated with the powerful Ó Dochartaigh (O'Doherty) clan, who were lords of Inishowen.

In the Annals of the Four Masters, a historical chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century, there are several references to individuals bearing the name Ó Giolla Dé or Gildea. One notable mention is in the year 1395, which records the death of Domhnall Ó Giolla Dé, a noted scholar and historian from County Donegal.

The earliest recorded spelling of the name in English is found in the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, a collection of official documents from the 16th century, where it appears as "Gilledowe" in 1543. Over time, the name evolved to its more modern spelling of Gildea.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Gildea was Fergus Gildea, born in County Donegal around 1560. He was a prominent landowner and chieftain of the Gildea clan.

Another notable figure was Reverend Terence Gildea (1640-1720), a Catholic priest and author from County Donegal, who wrote several works on Irish history and theology.

In the 18th century, Patrick Gildea (1700-1789) was a successful merchant and landowner in Donegal, and his grandson, also named Patrick Gildea (1776-1844), was a prominent lawyer and judge in Ireland.

During the 19th century, James Gildea (1838-1920) was a renowned Irish-American author and journalist who wrote extensively about Irish culture and history.

One of the most famous individuals with the surname Gildea was Sir James Gildea (1870-1948), an Irish-born British Army officer who served in both World Wars and was awarded the Distinguished Service Order for his bravery.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gildea

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Gildea.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Gildea was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Gildea has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Gildea was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Gildea, please contact us.

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