2000
#758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 41,393
First available Census row
Per 100,000 15.34
Uncommon Last name
Gillespie
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from Gaelic meaning "bishop's servant" or "servant of the church."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 46,392 Americans carry the last name Gillespie. That puts it at #836 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 13.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 7,388 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gillespie surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Gillespie with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
46K
1 in 7,388
Census rank
#836
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
13.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
40K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 40,456 bearers of the surname Gillespie in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 13.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 836th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gillespie, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gillespie
The surname Gillespie has its origins in Scotland, dating back to the late medieval period. It is a territorial name derived from the lands of Gillespie, located in East Lothian, near Edinburgh. The name is believed to have originated from the Gaelic "Gilleasbuig," which means "servant of the bishop."
The earliest recorded mention of the name Gillespie can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented Scottish landowners who swore fealty to King Edward I of England. One of the entries in the Rolls is "Johan de Gyllesbyr," likely a variant spelling of Gillespie.
In the 15th century, the Gillespie family held lands in East Lothian and Fife, and their name appeared in various charters and legal documents of the time. One notable member of the family was Sir John Gillespie, who was appointed as a judge in the Court of Session in 1532.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Gillespies were prominent in the Scottish Reformation movement. Rev. George Gillespie (1613-1648), a Scottish minister and theologian, was a leading figure in the Presbyterian Church and a influential writer on religious matters.
In the 18th century, the Gillespies were involved in the Scottish Enlightenment. William Gillespie (1776-1825) was a renowned Scottish philosopher and mathematician, known for his contributions to the field of natural philosophy.
Another notable figure was Sir Robert Rollo Gillespie (1766-1814), a Scottish military officer who served in the British Army during the Napoleonic Wars. He played a crucial role in the capture of the Dutch colony of Java in 1811.
James Gillespie (1737-1805) was a Scottish tobacco merchant and philanthropist who established the Gillespie's Hospital in Edinburgh, a school for the education of poor children.
Throughout history, the surname Gillespie has been associated with various place names, such as Gillespietown and Gillespiehill, reflecting the family's landholdings and influence in Scotland.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gillespie
Among Census respondents with the surname Gillespie, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Gillespie bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Gillespie surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.6% · 31,783
- Black or African American13.4% · 5,431
- Two or more races3.7% · 1,511
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 1,297
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 260
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 174
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gillespie
Gillespie appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#811
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 42,693
+1,300 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 14.47
Rank movement Down 53 places
2020
#836
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 40,456
-2,237 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 13.54
Rank movement Down 25 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #758 | 41,393 | 15.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #811 | 42,693 | 14.47 | +1,300 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 53 places |
| 2020 | #836 | 40,456 | 13.54 | -2,237 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 25 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Gillespie surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #811 | #836 | -3.1% |
| Count | 42,693 | 40,456 | -5.2% |
| Per 100K | 14.47 | 13.54 | -6.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gillespie bearers went from 42,693 to 40,456 (-5.2% change). The surname moved down 25 positions in the national ranking, going from #811 to #836.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Gillespie
FAQ
Gillespie surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gillespie?
Name Census estimates that about 46,392 living Americans carry the surname Gillespie. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 7,388 residents.
How common is Gillespie?
Gillespie ranks #836 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 13.54 per 100,000 residents, which is about 14 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 40,456 people with the surname Gillespie. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (46,392), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 13.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 13.54 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 14 of them to have the surname Gillespie.
Has Gillespie become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gillespie went from 42,693 recorded bearers to 40,456. That is a decrease of 2,237 (-5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #811 to #836.
What does the Census say about the background of Gillespie?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gillespie, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.6%. The next largest groups are Black (13.4%) and Two or More Races (3.7%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Gillespie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.6% (31,783 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gillespie appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.6%), Black (13.4%), Two or More Races (3.7%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Gillespie (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Gillespie mean?
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from Gaelic meaning "bishop's servant" or "servant of the church." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Gillespie (13.54 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Gillespie?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.