Gilland last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Gilland

A Scottish and Irish topographical surname referring to someone who lived near a ravine or narrow valley.

Gilland, 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 Gilland surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gilland in America

Gilland is the 12670th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gilland surname appeared 2,439 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 Gilland.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gilland 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 12670 12598 0.57%
Count 2,439 2,255 7.84%
Proportion per 100k 0.83 0.84 -1.20%

The history of the last name Gilland

The surname Gilland has its origins in England, with records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "gil" meaning a ravine or a deep rocky valley, and "land" meaning land or territory. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a ravine or a valley.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from 1195, where a person named Robert de Gilelande is mentioned. The name appears to have been concentrated in the counties of Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire, and Yorkshire during the medieval period.

In the 13th century, the name was also recorded in various spellings such as Gilland, Gylland, and Gylande. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 contain entries for individuals with the surname Gilland, including a William Gilland from Nottinghamshire.

The Gilland family held lands in the village of Gilland in Nottinghamshire, which may have contributed to the surname's origin and its association with that particular location. This place name is derived from the Old English words "gil" and "land" and is recorded in the Domesday Book of 1086.

Notable individuals with the surname Gilland include:

  1. Sir John Gilland (c. 1330 - 1399), an English knight and landowner in Lincolnshire.
  2. Thomas Gilland (c. 1450 - 1520), a member of the Guild of Corpus Christi in York, known for his contributions to the city's religious life.
  3. Elizabeth Gilland (c. 1570 - 1635), a wealthy landowner in Nottinghamshire who left a substantial inheritance to her descendants.
  4. William Gilland (1620 - 1687), a merchant and ship owner from Hull, who traded with the Netherlands and Baltic regions.
  5. Robert Gilland (1750 - 1820), a prominent farmer and landowner in Yorkshire, known for his innovations in agricultural practices.

As the centuries passed, the Gilland surname spread beyond its original geographic concentration, with bearers of the name found in various parts of England and eventually migrating to other parts of the world, including North America and Australia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gilland

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

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 Gilland was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 89.26% 2,177
Non-Hispanic Black Only 4.31% 105
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 1.80% 44
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.33% 8
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.09% 51
Hispanic Origin 2.21% 54

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 Gilland has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 89.26% 93.17% -4.29%
Black 4.31% 3.28% 27.14%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.80% 0.35% 134.88%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.33% 0.40% -19.18%
Two or More Races 2.09% 1.51% 32.22%
Hispanic 2.21% 1.29% 52.57%

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 Gilland was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Gilland last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/gilland-surname-popularity/.

"Gilland last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/gilland-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

Gilland last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/gilland-surname-popularity/.

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