The Gaillard surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 2,566 people carried this name — #12,140 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 114,900 people counted. That is up 11% from 2,304 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Gaillard surname
Gaillard: a surname, often associated with the Huguenots.
From gaillard (“strong”).
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Gaillard» (French), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 19,916 people named Gaillard.
295 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 103 départements, most often Paris.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
1,722 people named Gaillard live in Switzerland.
They live in 15 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Vaud.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 759 people named Gaillard live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 460 people named Gaillard live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Liège.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In Poland’s population register
20 people named Gaillard have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 37 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 4 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Pomeranian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In print
Gaillard in American newspapers,
1915.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 28,531 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Gaillard,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Ludovic Gaillard 1838–1910 · engineer -
Jules Gaillard 1839–1911 · politician -
Lucien Gaillard 1861–1942 · goldsmith -
Henri Gaillard 1866–1939 · typographer -
Jacques Gaillard 1875–1940 · cellist
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 229 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Gaillard.
When the index is not enough
This page says where Gaillard is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.