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

Gilles, 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 Gilles surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gilles in America

Gilles is the 8082nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gilles surname appeared 4,102 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 Gilles.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gilles 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 Gilles

The surname Gilles originated in France during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the French personal name Gilles, which itself comes from the Latin name Aegidius, meaning "young goat." The name can be traced back to the 6th century, when a Greek saint named Aegidius lived as a hermit in southern France.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Gilles can be found in various medieval documents from the 12th and 13th centuries in northern France and Normandy. The name was particularly common in the regions of Picardy, Île-de-France, and Normandy. It was often spelled in different ways, such as Gile, Gile, and Gilles.

One notable early bearer of the name was Gilles de Corbeil, a French physician and poet who lived in the late 12th and early 13th centuries. He served as the court physician to King Philip Augustus of France and wrote several medical treatises in verse form.

Another important historical figure with the surname Gilles was Gilles de Rais (1404-1440), a French nobleman and military commander who fought alongside Joan of Arc during the Hundred Years' War. However, he later became notorious for his crimes of serial murder and was eventually executed for his actions.

In the 15th century, there was a French painter known as Gilles le Breton (c. 1400-1460), who was active in Paris and Bourges. He is known for his illuminated manuscripts and paintings depicting religious scenes and portraits.

The surname Gilles also has a connection to various place names in France, such as Gilles (Normandy), Gilles-les-Bois (Picardy), and Gilles-les-Vignes (Île-de-France). These place names likely contributed to the spread and popularity of the surname in their respective regions.

Another notable bearer of the name was Gilles Corozet (1510-1568), a French historian and writer from Paris. He is best known for his work "Les Antiquitez de Paris," which provided a detailed account of the history and monuments of the city.

Over the centuries, the surname Gilles has been carried by many other notable individuals, including philosophers, artists, and writers, particularly in France and other French-speaking regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gilles

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

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

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

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