The Gill surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 74,948 people carried this name — #435 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 3,940 people counted. That is up 9% from 68,699 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Gill surname
A Scottish and Northern English habitational surname from Old Norse for someone who lived near a gill.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Gill» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890
Ireland registered 62 births for the Gill name in 1890.
They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Connacht. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 2,800 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born, 1890
Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 1,902 people named Gill 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 Poland’s population register
560 people named Gill have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 770 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 14 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Kuyavian-Pomeranian.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere 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 France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 173 people named Gill.
56 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 24 départements, most often Moselle.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where 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
142 people named Gill live in Switzerland.
They live in 12 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where 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 Belgium’s population register
At least 25 people named Gill 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 Antwerp.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
1,226 people named Gill are counted in Sweden, Norway and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0 · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Gill in American newspapers,
1859–1899.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 846,138 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Gill,
with a public archive behind them.
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John Gill d. 1899 · judge
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William Gill d. 1869 · painter
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Peter Gill d. 2021 · politician
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Thomas Gill d. 1714 · physician
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Michael Henry Gill d. 1879 · printer
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Sonya Gill d. 2026 · political activist
Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Gill.
- Gilg 203 · U.S. census
- Gilger 492 · U.S. census
- Gili 141 · U.S. census
- Giliberti 336 · U.S. census
- Giliberto 306 · U.S. census
- Gilis 104 · U.S. census
- Gilland 2,439 · U.S. census
- Gillard 4,099 · U.S. census
- Gille 814 · U.S. census
- Gillen 8,462 · U.S. census
- Giller 946 · U.S. census
- Gilles 4,102 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Gill 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.