Gil: meaning “resembling a young goal”, origin & popularity

Meaning & origin

What it means

Gil is a form of Giles. One Greek interpretation is “resembling a young goal.” Gil is a variant of Gilam. One Hebrew interpretation is “the joy of the people.”

Explained through its name family

Where it comes from

Gil is a form of Giles. Giles has been associated with Late Latin and Greek naming traditions. Gil is a variant of Gilam. An origin associated with Gilam is Hebrew.

Explained through its name family

How it developed

In Spanish usage, Gil as a surname developed from Egidio.

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1914. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Gil is a form of Giles. The history of Giles gives this family its wider story. Giles was in use during the Middle Ages.

Combines direct and name-family evidence

Gil through the years

Babies since 1880: 4,971; 4,971 boys · 0 girls
Most popular year: 1957; 124 babies
2025: 20; #4,917 for boys
2021–25 vs 2016–20: −19%; Easing

Gil in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1914–2025, per million boys born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

By the numbers

In 2025, this name appeared in 20 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 4,917 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 18.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 124 in 1957. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 8,600 as a first name in 2020; 27,026 as a surname in 2020.

From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.

Gil’s family of names

In English usage, Gil is a diminutive of Gilbert. Gil shares a linguistic root with Giles. In Spanish usage, Gil has a conventional equivalent in the French form Gilles.

Walk Gil’s family in the name graph

Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Around the world

Gil has relatives in 8 languages.

8 related names in 8 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.

Each dot marks where a language is rooted, not where people with the name live today. Bigger dots hold more names. Dots on the border stand for languages further away. Language locations from Glottolog (CC BY 4.0); map from Natural Earth.

Nicknames & forms 5

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

Spellings & scripts 1

The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.

길original script · Korean

Across languages 11

Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.

Show 3 moreShow fewer

People named Gil

Characters named Gil: Gil Grissom (fictional character on the CBS crime drama), Gil Gunderson (character of The Simpsons).

Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.

Similar names

If you love Gil, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.

English

Sibling ideas

Names that share Gil’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Gil

A sister for Gil

Your shortlist

Gil