Show ContentsGillis History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Gillis Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Family Crest Download (JPG) Heritage Series - 600 DPI

Early Origins of the Gillis family

The surname Gillis was first found in Languedoc, where this eminent family held a family seat since ancient times.

Early History of the Gillis family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Gillis research. Another 331 words (24 lines of text) covering the years 1146, 1150, 1424, 1462, 1596, 1665, 1668, 1704, 1705, 1733, 1740, 1752, 1785, 1803, 1808 and 1815 are included under the topic Early Gillis History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gillis Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Gilly, Gilli, Gilles, La Gilly, Les Gilles, Le Gilly, De Gilly, De Gilli, Le Gilli, Du Gilley, Du Gilli, Des Gilles, Jilly, Jilli, Jilles, De Jilly, De Jilli, Des Jilles, Gillis and many more.

Early Notables of the Gillis family

Another 38 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Gillis Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Gillis World Ranking

Canada, the name Gillis is the 481st most popular surname with an estimated 10,050 people with that name. 1 However, in Newfoundland, Canada, the name Gillis is ranked the 519th most popular surname with an estimated 89 people with that name. 2 And in the United States, the name Gillis is the 1,691st popular surname with an estimated 17,409 people with that name. 3

Gillis migration to Australia +

Gillis Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Edwin G Gillis, (b. 1862), aged 21, Cornish carpenter travelling aboard the ship "Dallam Tower" arriving in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia on 1st November 1883 4

Gillis migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Gillis Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • Miss Sarah Gillis, British settler travelling from London aboard the ship "England" arriving in Auckland, New Zealand on 6th February 1867 5
  • Mr. Robert J. Gillis, British settler travelling from London, UK with 1 child aboard the ship "Assaye" arriving in Auckland, North Island, New Zealand on 26th December 1874 5
  • Robert James Gillis, aged 23, a farm labourer, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Assaye" in 1874 5

Gillis migration to Canada +

Gillis Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
  • Mr. Daniel Gillis U.E. who settled in Saint John, New Brunswick c. 1784 6
  • Mr. John Gillis U.E. who settled in St. Andrews, New Brunswick c. 1784 member of the Penobscot Association and the Cape Ann Association 6
Gillis Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century
  • Alex Gillis, who landed in Nova Scotia in 1801
  • Mr. Robert Gillis, aged 26 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Blonde" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in October 1847 7

Gillis migration to the United States +



Gillis Settlers in United States in the 17th Century
  • Elin Gillis, who settled in Virginia in 1649
  • Elinor Gillis, who arrived in Virginia in 1649 8
  • Annetje Gillis, who arrived in New Netherland(s) in 1662 8
  • Annette Gillis, who landed in New York in 1662
Gillis Settlers in United States in the 18th Century
  • William Gillis, who landed in Virginia in 1703 8
  • Elisbie Sutherland Gillis, who landed in New York NY in 1738 8
  • Mary Gillis, who arrived in New York in 1738 8
  • Catharine Gillis, who landed in New York in 1740 8
  • Sarah Gillis, who settled in New Jersey in 1773
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
Gillis Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Archibald Gillis, aged 45, who arrived in North Carolina in 1812 8
  • Neil Gillis, aged 50, who arrived in North Carolina in 1812 8
  • Norman Gillis, aged 45, who landed in North Carolina in 1812 8
  • Hector Gillis, aged 46, who arrived in North Carolina in 1812 8
  • Malcom Gillis, aged 50, who arrived in North Carolina in 1812 8
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Gillis (post 1700) +

  • Peter B. Gillis (1952-2024), American comic book writer best known for his work at Marvel Comics, including his work on Captain America, Shatter, Strikeforce: Morituri and Doctor Strange
  • Alan Leslie Gillis (1936-2022), Irish Fine Gael politician and Farmers' leader, President of the Irish Farmers' Association from 1990 to 1994
  • Julie Gillis C.B., British Programme Director of Department for Work and Pensions, appointed a Companion of the order of Bath (C.B) on 29th December 2018 by her Majesty The Queen for public service 9
  • Ann Gillis (1927-2018), American actress, from Little Rock, Arkansas; she played Becky Thatcher in David O. Selznick's The Adventures of Tom Sawyer (1938) and provided the voice of Faline in Bambi (1942)
  • Stephen Malcolm Gillis (1940-2015), American academic, 6th President of Rice University in Houston, Texas, from 1993 until 2004
  • James Lisle Gillis (1792-1881), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Pennsylvania (1857-1859)
  • Duncan Gillis (1883-1963), Canadian silver medalist athlete at the 1912 Summer Olympics, first Canada's flag bearer during the Olympic opening ceremonies
  • Clarence "Clarie" Gillis (1895-1960), Canadian social democratic politician and trade unionist from Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia, best known for securing the funding for the Canso Causeway between Nova Scotia's mainland and Cape Breton Island
  • Bradley Frank "Brad" Gillis (b. 1957), American guitarist, best known for his work with the band Night Ranger
  • ... (Another 28 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)
HMS Hood
  • Mr. John R Gillis (b. 1915), Canadian Ordinary Seaman serving for the Royal Navy from Campbells Creek, Port au Port Bay, Newfoundland, Canada, who sailed into battle and died in the HMS Hood sinking 10
  • George William Gillis (1918-1939), British Seaman with the Royal Navy aboard the HMS Royal Oak (1939) when she was torpedoed by U-47 and sunk; he died in the sinking 11
  • Mr. Hugh B. Gillis (b. 1881), British passenger from Sydney, Cape Breton, Nova Scotia was travelling aboard the railway ferry "SS Caribou" when it was struck by a German submarine torpedo on 14th October 1942, the most significant sinking in Canadian waters at that time, he died in the sinking

Suggested Readings for the name Gillis +

  • The Gillis Family in the South by Clayton G. Metcalf.
  1. "Surnames Meanings, Origins & Distribution Maps - Forebears." Forebears, https://forebears.io/surnames
  2. The order of Common Surnames in 1955 in Newfoundland retrieved on 20th October 2021 (retrieved from Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland by E.R. Seary corrected edition ISBN 0-7735-1782-0)
  3. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  4. Cornwall Online Parish Clerks. (Retrieved 2018, April 19). Emigrants to Australia NSW 1860 -88 [PDF]. Retrieved from http://www.opc-cornwall.org/Resc/pdfs/nsw_passenger_lists_1860_88.pdf
  5. New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 17th October 2018). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
  6. Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
  7. Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 30)
  8. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  9. "Birthday and New Year Honours Lists (1940 to 2019)." Issue 62507, 28 December 2018 | London Gazette, The Gazette, Dec. 2018, www.thegazette.co.uk/honours-lists
  10. H.M.S. Hood Association-Battle Cruiser Hood: Crew Information - H.M.S. Hood Rolls of Honour, Men Lost in the Sinking of H.M.S. Hood, 24th May 1941. (Retrieved 2016, July 15) . Retrieved from http://www.hmshood.com/crew/memorial/roh_24may41.htm
  11. Ships hit by U-boats crew list HMS Royal Oak (08) - (Retrieved 2018 February, 9th) - retrieved from https://uboat.net/allies/merchants/crews/ship68.html

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