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

Gillus, 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 Gillus surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gillus in America

Gillus is the 95955th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gillus surname appeared 190 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Gillus.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gillus 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 Gillus

The surname GILLUS is believed to have originated in Scotland during the early medieval period. It is thought to be a variation of the Gaelic name "Gille Iosa," which means "servant of Jesus." This name may have been adopted by someone who worked in the service of the church or a religious order.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name GILLUS can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented those who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England after his conquest of parts of Scotland. The entry "Gillys de Balhelvy" likely refers to an early bearer of the GILLUS name from the area of Balhelvy, which was located in Aberdeenshire.

In the 14th century, a John Gillus is recorded as being a witness to a charter granted by King David II of Scotland in 1359. This suggests that the GILLUS family had achieved a certain level of prominence and respectability by this time.

The GILLUS name is also associated with several place names in Scotland. The village of Gillusmilnebog, located in East Ayrshire, may have been named after an early GILLUS landowner or resident. Similarly, the lands of Gilliespark in Dumfries and Galloway could have derived their name from a person bearing the GILLUS surname.

Notable individuals with the GILLUS surname throughout history include:

1. William Gillus (c. 1540-1612), a Scottish minister who served as the first Protestant minister of Ayr.
2. Robert Gillus (c. 1580-1645), a Scottish academic and philosopher who served as the Principal of St. Leonard's College, St. Andrews.
3. James Gillus (c. 1620-1675), a Scottish merchant and member of the Merchant Guild of Glasgow.
4. Alexander Gillus (1680-1758), a Scottish landowner and laird of the estate of Gilliesholm in Ayrshire.
5. Margaret Gillus (1725-1802), a Scottish botanist and naturalist who contributed to the study of local flora and fauna in Aberdeenshire.

While the GILLUS name may be less common today, its origins can be traced back to the early medieval period in Scotland, where it was likely associated with religious service and later gained prominence as a respected surname among landowners, merchants, and scholars.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gillus

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

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

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

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