Gales
Usually a surname for someone from Wales, though a few old writers also thought it might point to Calais.
The #7,937 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 74,057 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The name is generally explained as an ethnic or regional surname from Anglo-Norman French Gales or Galles, meaning Wales or Welsh. In that sense, it would have been used for a Welshman or for someone identified with Wales. A minority of older sources suggested a possible link to Calais, but the Welsh explanation is the stronger and more common one.
History
Nineteenth-century surname writers repeatedly glossed Gales as 'the Welshman' or 'from Wales.' They also noted early spellings such as De Gales, Gale, Galle, and Gael, especially in older records and local directories. Because the form is relatively uncommon, its history is sometimes muddled with similar-looking names, so local family records can matter a lot.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In medieval Anglo-Norman usage, Wales itself could be written as Gales or Galles, which is why the surname was so readily understood as 'the Welshman.'
From the historical record
“Galer. Oaylea i v. Gales. Oaynar, Oaynor, Oainar, Oayner, Q&inor. — Bapt 'the son of Gwenivere.* 'Gaynore, QtieenGweniveT'(HalliweU). This”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances