Gillis
A surname that usually comes from the medieval personal name Giles, ultimately from Latin Aegidius.
The #1,910 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 16,393 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Gillis is generally taken as a surname formed from a personal name, most often Giles, which goes back to Latin Aegidius. The Latin name was popularized through the cult of Saint Giles, and in Scots, Irish, and continental usage it produced several short forms and spellings, including Gillis. In some families, especially in Irish and Scottish contexts, it may also reflect Gaelic naming forms that were later Anglicized to Gillis or related spellings.
History
19th-century surname writers commonly connected Gillis with Aegidius/Giles, and the name is well established in Scotland and Ireland. It also appears in North American records through migration from those regions. Because the same spelling can arise in more than one naming tradition, the exact origin of a given family line may vary.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same medieval saint’s name that gave English the surname Giles also produced a whole family of spellings across Britain and Ireland, including Gillis and Gillies.
From the historical record
“Maclise, MacLeesh, Mac Gleish, MacCleish, Gilleece, Gillis, etc. niAc 510IIA leit, Killelea. niAC 510IIA tuAitiiinii, Killoran”
— Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish names and surnames