Gilson
A surname that usually means “son of Gill,” with Gill often used as a short form of Gilbert or a feminine nickname in some records.
The #4,846 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 42,463 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Most historical sources treat Gilson as a patronymic built from Gill/Gil, a short form of the personal name Gilbert. In some older records, however, Bardsley notes that it can also be understood as “the son of Gill,” where Gill may be a nickname from Juliana rather than Gilbert. The name therefore has a small amount of ambiguity, but the core idea is a child or descendant of someone called Gill.
History
The surname is found in medieval and early modern English records, and later turns up in both Britain and North America. Nineteenth-century surname scholars also noted that some forms such as Jilson or Gillison could be related or variant spellings. In Irish contexts, Gilson can appear among surnames that have been anglicized in various ways, though the English patronymic explanation is the usual one.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname books sometimes connected Gilson with different kinds of “Gill,” showing how a seemingly simple name could be interpreted more than one way.
From the historical record
“GILRUTII. The same as Gilroy. GILSON. The son of Gill or Gilbert. GINKELL. Godart de Ginkell, bai-on de Reede, came with William, Prince of Orange, into England. He accompanied him to Ireland, where he besieged and took Athlone, for which service he Was created Earl of Athlone. GIN.AIAN. See Ginner. GINN. GIN.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom