Gillespie (surname)
Gillespie (/ɡɪˈlɛspi/ ghil-ESP-ee) is both a masculine given name and a surname in the English language. Variants include Gillaspie and Gillispie.
Origins
The given name is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Gille Easbaig (also rendered Gilleasbaig), meaning "bishop's servant".[1] The surname Gillespie is an Anglicised form of the Scottish Gaelic Mac Gille Easbuig, and the Irish Mac Giolla Easpaig, both of which mean "bishop's servant's son".[2] The given name itself is derived from a word of Latin origin,[3] the Old Irish epscop being derived from the Latin episcopus.[4]
An early example of the name in Scotland occurs in a charter dated 1175–1199, recording a certain "Ewano filio Gillaspeck".[3][5] In Ireland, a family bearing the surname occupied the office of toísech of Clann Aílebra in the late twelfth century.[6] In 1172, for example, the toísech was slain by Donn Slébe Ua hEochada, King of Ulster. This slain Mac Gilla Espuic may be identical to a certain Gilla Óengusa mac Gilla Espuic, rechtaire of the Monaig of Ulster, who is earlier recorded in the king's service.[7] Whatever the case, a later family bearing the surname appears on record as erenaghs of Kilraine in County Donegal. During the 16th and 17th centuries in Ireland, the surname was most common in Ulster.[6] During the nineteenth century in Ireland, the surname was most numerous in the counties of Antrim, Donegal, Armagh, and Tyrone.[8] Scottish Gaelic forms of the surname include GillEasbuig[9] and GillEasbaig.[10]
Gillespie
- A. Arnold Gillespie (1899–1978), American cinema special effects artist
- Aaron Gillespie (born 1983), American rock singer & drummer
- Alastair Gillespie (1922-2018), Canadian politician
- Albert Gillespie (1912–1938), Australian cricketer and Royal Air Force officer
- Archibald H. Gillespie (1810–1873), officer in the United States Marine Corps
- Bill Gillespie (journalist) (born 1946), Canadian journalist and author
- Bill Gillespie (politician) (1928–2008), American politician
- Bill Gillespie (footballer) (1887–1927), Australian footballer
- Billy Gillespie (1891–1981), Irish football (soccer) player
- Bobby Gillespie (born 1962), Scottish rock and roll musician
- Brock Gillespie (born 1982), American expatriate basketball player
- Charles Gillespie (1883–1964), New Zealand rugby union player and soldier
- Charles A. Gillespie Jr. (1935–2008), American diplomat
- Charlie Gillespie (born 1998), Canadian actor and singer
- Collin Gillespie (born 1999), American basketball player
- Craig Gillespie (born 1967), Australian film director
- Dan Gillespie Sells (born 1979), English singer
- Dana Gillespie (born 1949), British actress and singer
- Daniel Gillespie (1938–2017), American physicist
- Darlene Gillespie (born 1941), Mousketeer born in Canada
- David Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- Dean M. Gillespie (1884–1949), American politician
- Dizzy Gillespie (1917–1993), American jazz musician
- Earl Gillespie (1922–2003), American sportscaster
- Ed Gillespie (born 1961), American politician
- Floris Gillespie (1882–1967), Scottish painter
- Gary Gillespie (born 1960), Scottish footballer
- George Gillespie (1613–1648), Scottish theologian
- George Lewis Gillespie Jr. (1841–1913), US Army officer
- Gina Gillespie (born 1951), American former child actress, now an attorney
- Gregor Gillespie (born 1987), 4x NCAA Division 1 All-American Wrestler
- Haven Gillespie (1888–1975), American composer and lyricist
- Jacqueline Pascarl-Gillespie (born 1963), Australian author
- James Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- Janetta Gillespie (1876–1956), Scottish artist
- Jason Gillespie (born 1975), Australian cricketer
- John Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- John Smith Gillespie (1820 - 1903) Founding pastor of Broadway Baptist Church of Fort Worth, Texas
- Joseph Gillespie (1809–1885), American politician
- Keith Gillespie (born 1975), Northern Irish footballer
- Kevin Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- Margaret V. Gillespie (born 1969), American politician
- Mark Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- Michael Allen Gillespie (born 1951), American philosopher and social scientist
- Mike Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- Mitch Gillespie (born 1959), American politician
- Norm Gillespie, association football coach in Australia in the 1940s
- Nick Gillespie (born 1963), American editor and political writer
- Paul Gillespie (1920–1970), Major League Baseball catcher
- Phillip Gillespie (born 1975), Australian cricket umpire
- Robert Gillespie (born 1933), British actor, director and writer
- Ronald Gillespie (1924–2021), Canadian chemist
- Rosemary Gillespie (1941-2010), Australian lawyer and activist
- Rosemary Gillespie (biologist), Scottish-born American biologist
- Ross Gillespie (1935–2023), New Zealand hockey player
- Steven Gillespie (born 1985), English footballer
- Stuart Gillespie (born 1957), New Zealand cricketer
- Thomas Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
- Tyree Gillespie (born 1998), American football player
- William Gillespie (disambiguation), several people
Fictional characters
- Alessa Gillespie and Dahlia Gillespie, in the Silent Hill video game series
- Chief Bill Gillespie, in the novel In the Heat of the Night and its film and television adaptations
- Dr. Leonard Gillespie, in the Dr. Kildare and Dr. Gillespie film series
- Rudy Gillespie, on the television series Kickin' It
Gillaspie
- Conor Gillaspie (born 1987), American baseball player
- Kayne Gillaspie (born 1979), American fashion designer
- Logan Gillaspie (born 1997), American baseball player
Gillispie
- Billy Gillispie (born 1959), American basketball coach
- Charles Coulston Gillispie (1918–2015), American historian of science
- Connor Gillispie (born 1997), American baseball player
See also
- Tara Gilesbie, author of My Immortal
- Gillespie (disambiguation)
References
- ^ Hanks, P; Hardcastle, K; Hodges, F (2006). A Dictionary of First Names. Oxford Paperback Reference (2nd ed.). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 400, 404. ISBN 978-0-19-861060-1.
- ^ "Gillespie Family History". Ancestry.com. Retrieved 26 November 2014.
- ^ a b Black, GF (1971) [1946]. The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning, and History. New York: The New York Public Library. p. 306. ISBN 0-87104-172-3. Accessed via Open Library.
- ^ "Letter E, Column 157". The electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language (eDIL). Archived from the original on 6 December 2014. Retrieved 30 November 2014.
- ^ Cartularium Comitatus de Levanax. Edinburgh: Maitland Club. 1833. p. 12. Accessed via Google Books.
- ^ a b MacLysaght, E (1996). More Irish Families: A New Revised and Enlarged Edition of More Irish Families, Incorporating Supplement to Irish Families, with an Essay on Irish Chieftainries. Dublin: Irish Academic Press. p. 109. ISBN 0-7165-2604-2. Accessed via Open Library.
- ^ Byrne, FJ (2008) [2005]. "Ireland and Her Neighbours, c.1014–c.1072". In Ó Cróinín, D (ed.). Prehistoric and Early Ireland. New History of Ireland (series vol. 1). Oxford: Oxford University Press. pp. 862–898. ISBN 978-0-19-821737-4.
- ^ O'Laughlin, M (1992). The Book of Irish Families Great & Small. Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation. p. 125. ISBN 0-940134-08-X. Accessed via Open Library.
- ^ Owen, RC (1993). The Modern Gaelic-English Dictionary. Glasgow: Gairm Publishers. p. 138. ISBN 1-871901-29-4.
- ^ Mark, C (2003). The Gaelic-English Dictionary. New York: Routledge. p. 719. ISBN 0-203-27706-6.